The top-level domain (TLD) .OKINAWA is a geographical TLD. It was initially released in 2014 and was intended for usage by individuals, organizations, and businesses in Okinawa, Japan to express their individuality, establish their digital identification, and to promote regional development in cyberspace and actual space, according to the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), a function of ICANN, lists .okinawa as a sponsored TLD on their root zone database. The sponsoring organization for .OKINAWA is BusinessRalliart Inc., an Internet service company based in Okinawa Prefecture.
Practically speaking, TLDs like .OKINAWA ushered in a new era of internet identity, allowing greater flexibility and specificity in organization’s and individual’s domain names. For example, a café located in Okinawa can have a URL of www.mycafe.okinawa, while an Okinawa-based artist’s portfolio can be found at www.myname.okinawa. This creates a stronger reference point for the place or region and a more pronounced identity linked to that place.
An actual example of a website that utilizes the .OKINAWA TLD is the official Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau (www.ocvb.okinawa). They use this TLD to provide critical information about travel and tourism in the Okinawa region.
Research for this information came from ICANN’s website and resources, IANA’s root zone database, as well as direct checking the websites mentioned for their utilization of the .OKINAWA TLD.
To summarise, the .OKINAWA TLD has a specific geographic focus, allowing individuals, organizations, and businesses based in Okinawa, a region steeped in history and distinct culture in south Japan, to have an internet presence more closely aligned with their physical location. They can extend their individuality, promote their business, create a robust digital environment, and contribute to the regional development by using a domain specific to their location.
Sources:
- ICANN. (n.d.). New gTLD Program. https://newgtlds.icann.org/en/
- IANA. (n.d.). .okinawa — Delegation Record for .OKINAWA. https://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/okinawa.html
- Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau. https://www.ocvb.okinawa
