The top-level domain (TLD) “XN—80AO21A” is an IDN ccTLD (Internationalized Country Code Top-Level Domain), with the ASCII-compatible encoding (ACE) of “укр”. This TLD is associated with Ukraine. IDN TLDs allow Internet addresses to be represented in local scripts or languages, thereby increasing the accessibility of the internet to users worldwide.
The encoding “XN—80AO21A” is in Punycode, a special encoding used to convert Unicode strings into ASCII-compatible strings, which are supported by the Domain Name System that underpins the internet’s naming structure. The Punycode for “укр” – which is Ukrainian for ‘Ukr’ short for Ukraine – is “XN—80AO21A”.
According to the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), which oversees global IP address allocation, DNS root zone management, media types, and other Internet-related symbols and numbers, the ccTLD “XN—80AO21A” is sponsored by the ‘Communications Ukraine’ company, and its technical operations are managed by the Hostmaster Ltd. The domain is intended for use by entities connected with Ukraine.
The transition to using IDN ccTLDs and Punycode has been facilitated by the International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which has instituted the IDN Fast Track Process to enable nations and territories to submit requests for IDN ccTLDs. The process allows countries and territories to apply for IDN ccTLD(s) in their local languages and scripts. For Ukraine, the successful application through this process resulted in the ccTLD “XN—80AO21A”.
Moreover, ICANN is also responsible for the delegation and re-delegation of IDN ccTLDs. For instance, in 2013, the delegation status of “XN—80AO21A” was approved and it entered the Root Zone of the DNS of the internet, thereby making it globally available.
In conclusion, “XN—80AO21A” is an IDN ccTLD that represents “укр” (Ukraine) in the Domain Name System of the internet. It exemplifies the evolution and internationalization of the internet, ensuring it’s accessible and usable for people around the world, regardless of their language or script.
Sources:
1. IANA ccTLD assignment for Ukraine, IDN: ukр (.укр). https://data.iana.org/TLD/tlds-alpha-by-domain.txt
2. ICANN IDN Fast Track Process. https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/fast-track-2012-02-25-en
3. “Punycode: A Bootstring encoding of Unicode for Internationalized Domain Names in Applications (IDNA).” RFC 3492. https://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3492.txt
