SIST ISO 639:2024

Code for individual languages and language groups

This document specifies the ISO 639 language code and establishes the harmonized terminology and general principles of language coding. It provides rules for the selection, formation, presentation and use of language identifiers as well as language reference names. It also gives provisions (i.e. principles, rules and guidelines) for the selection, formation and presentation of language names in English and French. Furthermore, it introduces provisions for the adoption of standardized language code elements using language names other than English or French.
NOTE English, French and Russian are the official ISO languages.
In addition, this document gives guidance on the use of language identifiers and describes their possible combination with identifiers of other codes.
Specifically excluded from the ISO 639 language code are reconstructed languages or formal languages, such as computer programming languages and markup languages.
The ISO 639 language code is maintained by the ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA) (see Annex B).

Code pour les langues individuelles et les groupes de langues

Koda za posamezne jezike in jezikovne skupine

Ta dokument določa kodo jezika ISO 639 ter vzpostavlja usklajeno terminologijo in splošna načela jezikovnega kodiranja. Podaja pravila za izbiro, oblikovanje, predstavitev in uporabo identifikatorjev jezikov in referenčnih imen jezikov. Navaja tudi določbe (tj. načela, pravila in smernice) za izbiro, oblikovanje in predstavitev imen jezikov v angleščini in francoščini. Poleg tega uvaja določbe za sprejetje standardiziranih elementov kode jezika z uporabo imen jezikov, ki niso angleška ali francoska.
OPOMBA: Angleščina, francoščina in ruščina so uradni jeziki ISO.
Ta dokument podaja tudi smernice za uporabo identifikatorjev jezikov in opisuje možne kombinacije z identifikatorji drugih kod.
Iz jezikovne kode ISO 639 so izrecno izvzeti rekonstruirani jeziki ali formalni jeziki, kot sta računalniški programski jezik in označevalni jezik.
Jezikovno kodo ISO 639 vzdržuje Agencija za vzdrževanje ISO 639 (ISO 639/MA) (glej dodatek B).

General Information

• Status: Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 15-Dec-2022
• Publication Date: 03-Oct-2024
• ICS: 01.140.20 - Information sciences
• Technical Committee: IDT - Information, documentation, language and terminology
• Current Stage: 6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 18-Sep-2024
• Due Date: 23-Nov-2024
• Completion Date: 04-Oct-2024
• Ref Project: ISO 639:2023 - Code for individual languages and language groups

Relations

• Replaces: SIST ISO 639-4:2010 - Codes for the representation of names of languages - Part 4: General principles of coding of the representation of names of languages and related entities, and application guidelines
• Effective Date: 01-Nov-2024
• Replaces: SIST ISO 639-2:2003 - Codes for the representation of names of languages -- Part 2: Alpha-3 code
• Effective Date: 01-Nov-2024
• Replaces: SIST ISO 639-3:2008 - Codes for the representation of names of languages - Part 3: Alpha-3 code for comprehensive coverage of languages
• Effective Date: 01-Nov-2024
• Replaces: SIST ISO 639-5:2008 - Codes for the representation of names of languages - Part 5: Alpha-3 code for language families and groups
• Effective Date: 01-Nov-2024
• Replaces: SIST ISO 639-1:2003 - Codes for the representation of names of languages -- Part 1: Alpha-2 code
• Effective Date: 01-Nov-2024

Overview

SIST ISO 639:2024 - Code for individual languages and language groups - defines a harmonized system for identifying and naming human languages. It consolidates and replaces earlier parts of ISO 639 (formerly ISO 639‑1, ‑2, ‑3, ‑4, ‑5) into a single framework of language code elements. Each code element can include one to three language identifiers, a unique language reference name, optional English and French names, and a defined code element scope. The standard also sets rules for selection, formation, presentation and maintenance of language identifiers and names, and excludes reconstructed and formal languages (e.g., programming and markup languages).

Key Topics and Requirements

• Unified code model: Organizes identifiers into Sets (Set 1, Set 2, Set 3, Set 5) corresponding to the former ISO 639 parts; Set 1 uses two‑letter identifiers while Sets 2, 3 and 5 use three‑letter identifiers.
• Language reference names: Rules and principles for forming, disambiguating and presenting unique reference names.
• Language names in English and French: Mandatory provisions for English and French names and recommendations for names in other languages.
• Code element scopes: Defines scopes for individual languages, macrolanguages, language groups, special-purpose elements, and local‑use identifiers.
• Maintenance and governance: The ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA) manages changes and adoption procedures (see Annex B).
• Eligibility criteria: Guidance on when an individual, extinct, constructed or macrolanguage or a language group qualifies for coding.
• Interoperability rules: Guidance for combining language identifiers with other standardized codes (e.g., ISO 3166 country codes, ISO 15924 script codes) and for use in language tags and other applications.

Practical Applications and Users

SIST ISO 639:2024 is essential for anyone who needs reliable language identification and interoperability:

• Software developers and localization engineers (language tags, UI localization)
• Library and information science (cataloging, bibliographic records)
• Digital archives and content management systems (metadata, search)
• Language technology and NLP (corpora annotation, resource labeling)
• Standards bodies and data modelers integrating language identifiers with country (ISO 3166) or script (ISO 15924) codes
• Terminologists and translators ensuring consistent language naming in multilingual resources

The standard supports robust language tagging (e.g., IETF BCP 47 usage) and stable long‑term identifiers for data exchange, discovery and language resource management.

Related Standards

• IETF BCP 47 (language tags) - commonly implements ISO 639 identifiers
• ISO 3166 (country codes) - for regional combinations
• ISO 15924 (script codes) - for script‑specific identification

Keywords: ISO 639, SIST ISO 639:2024, language codes, language identifiers, language reference names, language coding, language groups, macrolanguage, language code maintenance, IETF BCP 47.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-november-2024
Nadomešča:
SIST ISO 639-1:2003
SIST ISO 639-2:2003
SIST ISO 639-3:2008
SIST ISO 639-4:2010
SIST ISO 639-5:2008
Koda za posamezne jezike in jezikovne skupine
Code for individual languages and language groups
Code pour les langues individuelles et les groupes de langues
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 639:2023
ICS:
01.140.20 Informacijske vede Information sciences
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 639
Second edition
2023-11
Code for individual languages and
language groups
Code pour les langues individuelles et les groupes de langues
Reference number
© ISO 2023
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction .vii
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
3.1 Terms related to language and individual languages . 1
3.2 Terms related to linguistic variation and language varieties . 3
3.3 Terms related to types of individual languages subject to language coding . 4
3.4 Terms related to language groups subject to language coding . 6
3.5 Terms related to modalities of language use . 6
3.6 Terms related to written representation of individual languages . 7
3.7 Terms related to language coding and naming languages . 8
4 Linguistic variation and fundamental concepts of identifying and categorizing
individual languages .10
4.1 General . 10
4.2 Linguistic variation . 10
4.2.1 Criteria and dimensions of linguistic variation . 10
4.2.2 Identification and types of individual languages and language groups .12
4.3 Individual languages and writing conventions . 13
5 The ISO 639 language code .14
5.1 Introduction to the ISO 639 language code . 14
5.2 Sets of language identifiers . 14
5.3 Language code elements and their structural components . 14
5.4 Language identifiers . 15
5.5 Language reference names .15
5.6 Language names in English and French . 16
5.7 Code element scopes and local-use language identifiers . 16
5.7.1 Types of code element scopes . 16
5.7.2 Code element scope of individual-language code elements . 16
5.7.3 Code element scope of macrolanguage code elements . 16
5.7.4 Code element scope of language-group code elements . 17
5.7.5 Code element scope of special-purpose code elements . 17
5.7.6 Local-use language identifiers . 18
5.8 Language code maintenance . 18
5.8.1 Basic rules for language code maintenance . 18
5.8.2 Language code maintenance activities . 18
5.9 Adoption of language code elements into other standards . 19
6 Criteria for language coding and naming languages .20
6.1 Information to be considered in language coding and naming languages .20
6.1.1 Pertinent reference sources . 20
6.1.2 Information necessary to identify and name individual languages and
language groups .20
6.2 Eligibility for language coding. 21
6.2.1 Eligibility of an individual language for language coding . 21
6.2.2 Eligibility of an extinct language or historical language for language coding .22
6.2.3 Eligibility of a constructed language for language coding.22
6.2.4 Eligibility of a macrolanguage for language coding .22
6.2.5 Eligibility of a language group for language coding .23
6.2.6 Criteria for the eligibility of individual languages for language coding in
Set 2 . 23
6.3 Principles governing the assignment of language reference names .23
6.4 Formation, disambiguation and presentation of language reference names . 24
iii
6.4.1 Rules for the formation of language reference names . 24
6.4.2 Rules for disambiguating or differentiating language reference names.25
6.4.3 Rules for the presentation of language reference names . 27
6.5 Rules for the selection, formation, and presentation of language names in English
and French . 27
6.6 Recommendations for the selection, formation, and presentation of language
names in languages other than English and French . 27
7 Fields of application.28
8 Combining language identifiers with other identifiers .29
8.1 Combining language identifiers with other standardized codes .29
8.2 Combining language identifiers with the ISO 3166 series.30
8.3 Combining language identifiers with ISO 15924 .30
8.4 Combining language identifiers with indicators of a language modality .30
8.5 Format of code combinations . 31
Annex A (normative) Explanatory illustration of the ISO 639 language code .32
Annex B (informative) Maintenance Agency for the ISO 639 language code .36
Bibliography .37
iv
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use
of (a) patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed
patent rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received
notice of (a) patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are
cautioned that this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent
database available at www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all
such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to
the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see
www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared jointly by Technical Committee ISO/TC 37, Language and terminology,
Subcommittee SC 2, Terminology workflow and language coding, and ISO/TC 46, Information and
documentation, Subcommittee SC 4, Technical interoperability.
This second edition cancels and replaces ISO 639-1:2002, ISO 639-2:1998, ISO 639-3:2007,
ISO 639-4:2010 and ISO 639-5:2008, which have been merged and technically revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— the wording of the text (with provisions, such as principles, rules and guidelines) has been
harmonized to apply to all sets of language identifiers of the ISO 639 language code;
— the ISO 639 language code subsets contained in the former ISO 639-1, ISO 639-2, ISO 639-3 and
ISO 639-5 are now represented by sets of language identifiers: Set 1, Set 2, Set 3 and Set 5, respectively,
and are not presented in this document;
— new developments in the field of coding systems have been taken into account;
— the title has been modified;
— the wordings in Clause 1 and Clauses 4 to 7 have been coordinated and harmonized;
— the Normative references have been updated;
— Clause 3 has been revised to harmonize the terminological entries for covering all sets of language
identifiers, coordinated with ISO 21636-1 and other pertinent standards;
— Clause 4 has been extended to cover additional guidelines;
— Clause 5 has been reformulated to harmonize previous texts;
v
— Clause 6 has been added;
— Clauses 7 and 8 have been revised to incorporate existing provisions, extending them to cover new
requirements in the field of language coding;
— a new Annex A has been added to display the relationship between the sets of language identifiers
and the language code elements of the ISO 639 language code;
— a new Annex B has been added to outline the role of the ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA)
and its handling of Change Requests (CR).
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
vi
Introduction
This document provides comprehensive principles, rules and guidelines for the identification and
specification of individual languages or language groups, as well as for their coding. The ISO 639
language code comprises language code elements each consisting of one to three language identifiers,
one unique language reference name, zero or more language names in English and French, and a code
element scope. Each language identifier designates a recognized individual language or language group.
For historical reasons, the language identifiers have been organized into several sets. These sets
correspond to the code tables of the former ISO 639 series (all under the general title Codes for the
representation of individual languages and language groups). This document merges these sets into a
unified system of language code elements with one to three language identifiers each. Some language
identifiers belong to more than one of the following sets (for more details, see 5.2):
— Set 1 comprises two-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-1) for major,
mostly national individual languages. This set has evolved from normative documents published in
1967.
— Set 2 comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-2) for a
larger number of widely known individual languages. Set 2 includes all individual languages covered
by Set 1 and encompasses 20 language code elements for individual languages that each have two
different three-letter language identifiers: one for bibliographic use (2B) and one for terminological
use (2T). The latter distinction is based on documents widely used since the 1970s. It has emerged
from two diverging language coding initiatives in the fields of librarianship and documentation on
the one hand and terminology and other language applications on the other.
— Set 3 also comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-3)
and aims at covering comprehensively all individual languages (including all individual languages
covered by Set 2).
— Set 5 also comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-5),
covering a larger set of language groups (including all language groups covered by Set 2). Set 5 was
established in 2008. All language identifiers for language groups in Set 2 also belong to Set 5.
These four sets of language identifiers of the ISO 639 language code are used by very large user
communities, which demands a high degree of coordinated code stability. Over the decades the
stakeholders involved in developing the ISO 639 language code have coordinated their activities
with the result that the currently valid language code elements constitute one single common code
space. This implies that all language code elements, independently of which set or sets their language
identifiers belong to, constitute the ISO 639 language code. Therefore, “code” occurs in the singular in
the title of this document.
The above-listed sets of language identifiers are accessible at the Language Coding Agencies (LCA)
hosting the data for the ISO 639 language code (see Annex B).
The language identifiers for individual languages or language groups can be used in a variety of
applications. These include the specification of the language used in a text, the language of terms
or words in a dictionary or terminology database, the language used in a spoken presentation, the
identification of language proficiency, the capability of handling human language in software, the
documentation of language resources, etc. The various sets of language identifiers are implemented in a
[12]
broad range of applications, including normative documents, such as those for IETF BCP 47 language
tags.
vii
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 639:2023(E)
Code for individual languages and language groups
1 Scope
This document specifies the ISO 639 language code and establishes the harmonized terminology and
general principles of language coding. It provides rules for the selection, formation, presentation and
use of language identifiers as well as language reference names. It also gives provisions (i.e. principles,
rules and guidelines) for the selection, formation and presentation of language names in English and
French. Furthermore, it introduces provisions for the adoption of standardized language code elements
using language names other than English or French.
NOTE English, French and Russian are the official ISO languages.
In addition, this document gives guidance on the use of language identifiers and describes their possible
combination with identifiers of other codes.
Specifically excluded from the ISO 639 language code are reconstructed languages or formal languages,
such as computer programming languages and markup languages.
The ISO 639 language code is maintained by the ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA) (see
Annex B).
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 3166-1, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country
code
ISO 15924, Information and documentation — Codes for the representation of names of scripts
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1 Terms related to language and individual languages
3.1.1
human language
means of communication characterized by a systematic use of sounds, visual-spatial signs, characters
or other written symbols or signs that can be combined to express or communicate meaning or a
message between humans
Note 1 to entry: Human language was originally developed for, and mainly used in, direct communication
between humans. Today its use is increasingly supported by information and communication technologies (ICTs).
Note 2 to entry: As the term “language” can represent different concepts, it is not listed as a synonym to the term
“human language”.
Note 3 to entry: Visual-spatial signs are indicated under signed modality (3.5.4).
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:— , 3.1.1]
3.1.2
idiolect
comprehensive set of all expressions of human language (3.1.1) with their meaning, characterized
by a coherent system of structural features, which is capable of coding complex facts and thoughts,
potentially used by a given individual person, in a given type of situation, at a given time, and in a given
medium
Note 1 to entry: Typically, a person has command of several idiolects of an individual language (3.1.3).
EXAMPLE 1 (hypothetical) The written informal American English used in the 1950s by a given person (an
adult working-class person with no academic training from Philadelphia, USA, who is a native speaker of English
and who does not show any particularly enhanced or constrained communicative functioning abilities).
EXAMPLE 2 (hypothetical) A given middle-aged renowned British academic in the field of linguistics in 2010:
a) speaking with received pronunciation at panel discussions with colleagues in academic conferences, and b)
discussing tennis tournaments with fellow tennis club members of the same town in the south-east of England.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.2, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened. Examples added to illustrate the
concept.]
3.1.3
individual language
individual human language
largest set of idiolects (3.1.2), used by different speakers (3.1.5), which are all interconnected through
high mutual intelligibility, or through a chain of high mutual intelligibility, or which are sociopolitically
considered as a unit equivalent to such a largest set
Note 1 to entry: Individual languages also encompass constructed languages (3.3.2), but do not include formal
languages (as defined in ISO 1087:2019, 3.1.10).
Note 2 to entry: Usually, in other contexts, individual languages are simply called “languages”. However, the term
“language” has multiple meanings and connotations, which can cause confusion in the context of this document.
Still, when an attribute and possibly the plural clearly indicate that individual languages are meant, this document
uses only “language(s)”, as in “creole languages”, “Asian languages” or “living languages” (3.3.3).
EXAMPLE English, Guarani, LIBRAS (Língua Brasileira de Sinais/Brazilian Sign Language), Haitian Creole,
Esperanto.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.3]
3.1.4
individual sign language
individual language (3.1.3) whose basic modality (3.5.5) is the signed modality (3.5.4)
Note 1 to entry: Usually “sign language” is part of the name of the respective individual sign language.
EXAMPLE American Sign Language (ASL), langue des signes québéquoise/Quebec Sign Language (LSQ).
Note 2 to entry: Individual sign languages differ from the “signed modality”, by which an individual language
can be expressed which is normally expressed in another language modality (3.5.1), such as by “Signing Exact
English” for expressing English. Therefore, the term “signed language” is not used as a synonym to the term
“individual sign language”.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.4]
1) Under preparation. Stage at the time of publication: ISO/DIS 21636-1:2023.
3.1.5
speaker
person who is capable of making use of an idiolect (3.1.2)
Note 1 to entry: The term “speaker” covers the use of all language modalities (3.5.1) and is thus used to denote
a generic concept “speaker”, also covering all specific concepts such as “writer”, “signer”, etc., which can be
introduced when needed.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.5, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened.]
3.1.6
language community
socially identifiable group that consists prototypically of the speakers (3.1.5) of an individual language
(3.1.3) or language variety (3.2.4) and whose members identify with that individual language or
language variety
Note 1 to entry: In the case of endangered languages, the speakers of the individual language can actually be a
minority of a language community.
3.2 Terms related to linguistic variation and language varieties
3.2.1
linguistic variation
language variation
differences within and between individual languages (3.1.3)
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.1]
3.2.2
external criterion for linguistic variation
set of properties of idiolects (3.1.2) that are based on factors external to the linguistic features of the
idiolects’ systems
Note 1 to entry: External criteria for linguistic variation contain properties of idiolects that pertain to the
speakers (3.1.5) who use the idiolects, or to the language use event (ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.6) in which the idiolects
are used.
EXAMPLE “Being characteristic of speakers from East Anglia” is a property which is the only element of an
external criterion for linguistic variation [in this case, a criterion related to geographical space (see the example
to ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.4), defining a certain dialect (3.2.5) of English].
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.2]
3.2.3
structural criterion for linguistic variation
set of properties of idiolects (3.1.2) that are based on the linguistic features of the idiolects’ systems
Note 1 to entry: This set of properties includes in particular phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic,
lexical, semantic or pragmatic properties.
Note 2 to entry: Elements of the structural criterion for linguistic variation are also called “markers”, e.g. in
ISO/TR 20694. The term “structural criterion for linguistic variation” is preferred because it integrates better
with the framework for linguistic variation (3.2.1) developed in the ISO 21636 series.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.3]
3.2.4
language variety
variety
largest subset of an individual language (3.1.3) that is internally consistent with
regard to both an external criterion for linguistic variation (3.2.2) and a structural criterion for linguistic
variation (3.2.3), and that can be identified and named
Note 1 to entry: Since terms such as “linguistic variation” (3.2.1), “language variation”, “linguistic variant”,
“language variant” or “linguistic variety” are also used to represent other concepts, only the term “language
variety” is used in this document.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.5]
3.2.5
dialect
language variety (3.2.4) specific to speakers (3.1.5) from a particular geographical location
or region
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.1, modified — Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.2.6
standard variety
language variety (3.2.4) recognized as standard or official by most speakers (3.1.5) across the
geographical area where the individual language (3.1.3) is spoken or used, or across a large part of that
geographical area where several dialects (3.2.5) are used
Note 1 to entry: A standard variety of an individual language is typically used in official or public communication
and in communication between users of different language varieties.
Note 2 to entry: A standard variety is often characterized by a high degree of standardization or normalization.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.2, modified — Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.3 Terms related to types of individual languages subject to language coding
3.3.1
natural language
individual language (3.1.3) which is or was in active use in a language community (3.1.6), passed on from
one generation of speakers (3.1.5) to the next
EXAMPLE Bambara, English, Haitian Creole, Latin, LIBRAS (Língua Brasileira de Sinais/Brazilian Sign
Language).
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.9]
3.3.2
constructed language
individual language (3.1.3) whose rules are explicitly established prior to its use
EXAMPLE Esperanto, Volapük, Quenya, Na’vi.
Note 1 to entry: Constructed languages do not include reconstructed languages (3.3.9), computer programming
languages, mark-up languages or similar formal languages.
Note 2 to entry: Some constructed languages are based on one or several natural languages (3.3.1) and are
therefore not artificial. Therefore, the term “artificial language”, which is often used as a synonym, is not used in
this document.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.10]
3.3.3
living language
individual language (3.1.3) used by a language community (3.1.6) at the present time
EXAMPLE English, Bambara.
Note 1 to entry: Living languages include previously extinct languages (3.3.4) that have been revitalized, such as
Hebrew or Manx.
3.3.4
extinct language
individual language (3.1.3) that is no longer in use and that has lost its last native speaker (3.1.5) in
recent centuries
EXAMPLE Old Prussian, Amanayé, Basay.
3.3.5
historical language
individual language (3.1.3) that went out of use before modern times
EXAMPLE Old English, Middle English, Ancient Greek, Etruscan.
Note 1 to entry: Historical languages include known earlier epochs of a living language (3.3.3) or of an extinct
language (3.3.4).
3.3.6
full language
individual language (3.1.3) that is used in a variety of domains, used to support communication
across most or all social groups, such as genders and age groups of a language community (3.1.6), and
stable enough to have at least one language variety (3.2.4) that is widely understood across the whole
geographical area of the individual language
Note 1 to entry: Full languages are subject to gradual change as each new generation makes their individual
language its own.
3.3.7
restricted language
language variety (3.2.4) of an individual language (3.1.3) or constructed language (3.3.2) that resembles
in some contexts an individual language, but that is not a full language (3.3.6) in that it is used in limited
circumstances
Note 1 to entry: Restricted languages are, for instance, avoidance languages, secret languages, ceremonial
languages, play languages, urban languages or youth languages.
3.3.8
macrolanguage
individual language (3.1.3) that for the purpose of language coding can be subdivided into two or more
other individual languages
EXAMPLE In some contexts, Chinese is declared as the individual language of documents written in Han
ideographic script (3.6.2), while the language of the document can be Mandarin, Yue, Wu or any other related
individual language of China.
Note 1 to entry: In contrast to language groups (3.4.1), the individual languages that correspond to a macrolanguage
shall be very closely related, and there shall be some context in which they are deemed recognizable as separate
individual languages.
Note 2 to entry: Language development can change the relationship between a macrolanguage and related
individual languages or dialects (3.2.5) over time.
3.3.9
reconstructed language
hypothetical individual language (3.1.3) that is not itself attested but postulated based on regular
correspondences among a group of attested languages, of which the hypothetical language is held to be
a common ancestral language
EXAMPLE Proto-Indo-European, Proto-Germanic.
3.4 Terms related to language groups subject to language coding
3.4.1
language group
set of individual languages (3.1.3) based on a shared characteristic
EXAMPLE “Caucasian languages” (geographical group of languages); “North Caucasian languages” [language
family (3.4.2)].
Note 1 to entry: Shared characteristics include, but are not limited to, being spoken in the same geographical
region, being genetically related [i.e. being (a branch of) a language family] or sharing typological characteristics
such as being a tonal language or being a morphologically isolating language, or combinations thereof.
Note 2 to entry: A language group can encompass several smaller language groups.
Note 3 to entry: An identified language group is a group of individual languages that does not correspond to a
macrolanguage (3.3.8). It can contain macrolanguages among its members.
3.4.2
language family
language group (3.4.1) encompassing individual languages (3.1.3) based on a common ancestral language
EXAMPLE North Caucasian languages.
Note 1 to entry: It is possible for a language family to consist of a single individual language as a member.
3.5 Terms related to modalities of language use
3.5.1
language modality
language variety (3.2.4) specific to a certain medium or channel used for communication by the speaker
(3.1.5)
Note 1 to entry: As specified in ISO 21636-1, language modalities encompass the spoken modality (3.5.2), the
written modality (3.5.3), the signed modality (3.5.4), the drummed modality, the whistled modality, etc. This
document refers only to the spoken modality, the written modality and the signed modality.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.7, modified — Notes 1 to 3 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry.]
3.5.2
spoken modality
spoken language modality
language modality (3.5.1) used in oral communication, and that has as its primary mode of expression
the articulated sounds of the speaker’s (3.1.5) voice
Note 1 to entry: Events of language use in the spoken modality are usually also multimodal, as gestures, facial
expressions and other similar phenomena almost always accompany speech.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.1, modified — Notes 1 to 3 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry.]
3.5.3
written modality
written language modality
language modality (3.5.1) that makes use of a system of graphic symbols
Note 1 to entry: Some constructed languages (3.3.2) have the written modality as their basic modality (3.5.5), but
in natural languages (3.3.1), the spoken modality (3.5.2) or signed modality (3.5.4) are basic modalities from which
the written modality is derived.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.3, modified — Note 2 to entry deleted.]
3.5.4
signed modality
signed language modality
visual-spatial language modality (3.5.1) that uses a combination of hand shapes, palm orientation and
movement of the hand, arm, mouth, head or body, and facial expression
Note 1 to entry: The language modality “signed modality” differs from “individual sign language” (3.1.4), which
designates those individual languages (3.1.3) whose basic modality (3.5.5) is the signed modality.
Note 2 to entry: The signed modality is the basic modality for individual sign languages, but some other individual
languages also have a signed modality.
EXAMPLE Signing Exact English, the signed modality for expressing (spoken or written) English.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.4, modified — Last part of Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.5.5
basic modality
basic language modality
language modality (3.5.1) in which a particular individual language (3.1.3) is most commonly used, in
which it develops, and from which other language modalities (if any) of that individual language are
derived
Note 1 to entry: For most natural languages (3.3.1), the basic modality is the spoken modality (3.5.2); in particular,
the written modality (3.5.3) is derived from the spoken modality in the sense that in these natural languages
writing is a representation of properties of oral language use [even in the case of non-alphabetic writing systems
(3.6.1)].
Note 2 to entry: For individual sign languages (3.1.4), the basic modality is the signed modality (3.5.4). If these are
written or otherwise graphically represented, the written modality is derived from the signed modality in the
sense that writing is a representation of properties of visual-spatial language use (i.e. of the signed modality).
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.11, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened and Note 3 to entry deleted.]
3.6 Terms related to written representation of individual languages
3.6.1
writing system
system for writing an individual language (3.1.3), including the script (3.6.2) and orthographic
conventions used
3.6.2
script
comprehensive set of graphic characters used for the written form of one or more
individual languages (3.1.3)
EXAMPLE Cyrillic, Hiragana.
Note 1 to entry: A script, as opposed to an arbitrary subset of characters, is defined in distinction to other scripts;
in general, readers of one script can be unable to read the glyphs of another script easily, even where there is a
historical relation between them.
3.6.3
script identifier
script symbol
string of characters assigned to represent a script (3.6.2) unequivocally
3.7 Terms related to language coding and naming languages
3.7.1
code
collection of rules that maps the elements of a first set of values onto the elements of one or more
different sets
Note 1 to entry: The first set of elements in the ISO 639 language code refers to individual languages (3.1.3)
or language groups (3.4.1). The sets of elements mapped onto are code values, specifically language identifiers
(3.7.10).
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 2382:2015, 2121552, modified — Admitted term “coding scheme” deleted. “first set
of values onto the elements of one or more different sets” replaced “first set onto the elements of a
second set” in the definition. Notes 1 to 2 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry. Notes 3 to 5 to
entry deleted.]
3.7.2
code element
collection of structured information about an entity represented in a code (3.7.1)
3.7.3
language code
code (3.7.1) that maps individual languages (3.1.3) or language groups (3.4.1), represented by their
unique language reference name (3.7.13), to language identifiers (3.7.10)
EXAMPLE The ISO 639 language code.
Note 1 to entry: The activity and subject of developing a language code is called “language coding”.
3.7.4
language code element
code element (3.7.2) of a language code (3.7.3) that represents an individual language (3.1.3) or a language
group (3.4.1)
EXAMPLE “Efik” [language reference name (3.7.13)], “Efik” [language name (3.7.12) in English], “efik”
(language name in French), “efi” [language identifier (3.7.10)] and the information on the code element scope
(3.7.5) “individual language” together constitute a language code element.
Note 1 to entry: A language code element is composed of a minimum of one unique language reference name and
one or more language identifiers that belong to one or more sets.
Note 2 to entry: Language code elements cited in this document each represent an individual language or
language group. In addition to the language code elements, the ISO 639 language code also contains four special-
purpose code elements (3.7.9).
3.7.5
code element scope
attribute of a code element (3.7.2) that documents the way in which its denotation maps onto one or
more individual languages (3.1.3)
Note 1 to entry: There are four code element scopes: individual-language code element (3.7.6), macrolanguage code
element (3.7.7), language-group code element (3.7.8) and special-purpose code element (3.7.9).
3.7.6
individual-language code element
language code element (3.7.4) with a value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for an individual language
(3.1.3)
Note 1 to entry: The individual language represented by an individual-language code element is considered
distinct from any other individual language represented by a different individual-language code element.
Note 2 to entry: An individual-language code element represents an individual language that is not a
macrolanguage (3.3.8).
3.7.7
macrolanguage code element
language code element (3.7.4) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for a macrolanguage (3.3.8)
Note 1 to entry: A macrolanguage code element represents an individual language (3.1.3) that is a macrolanguage.
3.7.8
language-group code element
language code element (3.7.4) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for a language group (3.4.1)
Note 1 to entry: A language-group code element represents a group of individual languages (3.1.3) that does not
correspond to a macrolanguage (3.3.8).
3.7.9
special-purpose code element
language code element (3.7.4) of a language code (3.7.3) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for
a special purpose
EXAMPLE mul – multiple languages in the content.
Note 1 to entry: A special-purpose code element does not refer to any individual language (3.1.3) or language
group (3.4.1) identified in the ISO 639 language code but is useful for data management purposes.
3.7.10
language identifier
language symbol
string of characters assigned to an individual language (3.1.3) or a language group (3.4.1) for the purpose
of identifying it unequivocally
Note 1 to entry: In the ISO 639 language code, the string of characters consists of a string of letters.
Note 2 to entry: When a single language code element (3.7.4) has multiple language identifiers, the language
...

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 639
Second edition
2023-11
Code for individual languages and
language groups
Code pour les langues individuelles et les groupes de langues
Reference number
© ISO 2023
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
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Phone: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .v
Introduction .vii
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
3.1 Terms related to language and individual languages . 1
3.2 Terms related to linguistic variation and language varieties . 3
3.3 Terms related to types of individual languages subject to language coding . 4
3.4 Terms related to language groups subject to language coding . 6
3.5 Terms related to modalities of language use . 6
3.6 Terms related to written representation of individual languages . 7
3.7 Terms related to language coding and naming languages . 8
4 Linguistic variation and fundamental concepts of identifying and categorizing
individual languages .10
4.1 General . 10
4.2 Linguistic variation . 10
4.2.1 Criteria and dimensions of linguistic variation . 10
4.2.2 Identification and types of individual languages and language groups .12
4.3 Individual languages and writing conventions . 13
5 The ISO 639 language code .14
5.1 Introduction to the ISO 639 language code . 14
5.2 Sets of language identifiers . 14
5.3 Language code elements and their structural components . 14
5.4 Language identifiers . 15
5.5 Language reference names .15
5.6 Language names in English and French . 16
5.7 Code element scopes and local-use language identifiers . 16
5.7.1 Types of code element scopes . 16
5.7.2 Code element scope of individual-language code elements . 16
5.7.3 Code element scope of macrolanguage code elements . 16
5.7.4 Code element scope of language-group code elements . 17
5.7.5 Code element scope of special-purpose code elements . 17
5.7.6 Local-use language identifiers . 18
5.8 Language code maintenance . 18
5.8.1 Basic rules for language code maintenance . 18
5.8.2 Language code maintenance activities . 18
5.9 Adoption of language code elements into other standards . 19
6 Criteria for language coding and naming languages .20
6.1 Information to be considered in language coding and naming languages .20
6.1.1 Pertinent reference sources . 20
6.1.2 Information necessary to identify and name individual languages and
language groups .20
6.2 Eligibility for language coding. 21
6.2.1 Eligibility of an individual language for language coding . 21
6.2.2 Eligibility of an extinct language or historical language for language coding .22
6.2.3 Eligibility of a constructed language for language coding.22
6.2.4 Eligibility of a macrolanguage for language coding .22
6.2.5 Eligibility of a language group for language coding .23
6.2.6 Criteria for the eligibility of individual languages for language coding in
Set 2 . 23
6.3 Principles governing the assignment of language reference names .23
6.4 Formation, disambiguation and presentation of language reference names . 24
iii
6.4.1 Rules for the formation of language reference names . 24
6.4.2 Rules for disambiguating or differentiating language reference names.25
6.4.3 Rules for the presentation of language reference names . 27
6.5 Rules for the selection, formation, and presentation of language names in English
and French . 27
6.6 Recommendations for the selection, formation, and presentation of language
names in languages other than English and French . 27
7 Fields of application.28
8 Combining language identifiers with other identifiers .29
8.1 Combining language identifiers with other standardized codes .29
8.2 Combining language identifiers with the ISO 3166 series.30
8.3 Combining language identifiers with ISO 15924 .30
8.4 Combining language identifiers with indicators of a language modality .30
8.5 Format of code combinations . 31
Annex A (normative) Explanatory illustration of the ISO 639 language code .32
Annex B (informative) Maintenance Agency for the ISO 639 language code .36
Bibliography .37
iv
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use
of (a) patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed
patent rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received
notice of (a) patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are
cautioned that this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent
database available at www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all
such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to
the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see
www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared jointly by Technical Committee ISO/TC 37, Language and terminology,
Subcommittee SC 2, Terminology workflow and language coding, and ISO/TC 46, Information and
documentation, Subcommittee SC 4, Technical interoperability.
This second edition cancels and replaces ISO 639-1:2002, ISO 639-2:1998, ISO 639-3:2007,
ISO 639-4:2010 and ISO 639-5:2008, which have been merged and technically revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— the wording of the text (with provisions, such as principles, rules and guidelines) has been
harmonized to apply to all sets of language identifiers of the ISO 639 language code;
— the ISO 639 language code subsets contained in the former ISO 639-1, ISO 639-2, ISO 639-3 and
ISO 639-5 are now represented by sets of language identifiers: Set 1, Set 2, Set 3 and Set 5, respectively,
and are not presented in this document;
— new developments in the field of coding systems have been taken into account;
— the title has been modified;
— the wordings in Clause 1 and Clauses 4 to 7 have been coordinated and harmonized;
— the Normative references have been updated;
— Clause 3 has been revised to harmonize the terminological entries for covering all sets of language
identifiers, coordinated with ISO 21636-1 and other pertinent standards;
— Clause 4 has been extended to cover additional guidelines;
— Clause 5 has been reformulated to harmonize previous texts;
v
— Clause 6 has been added;
— Clauses 7 and 8 have been revised to incorporate existing provisions, extending them to cover new
requirements in the field of language coding;
— a new Annex A has been added to display the relationship between the sets of language identifiers
and the language code elements of the ISO 639 language code;
— a new Annex B has been added to outline the role of the ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA)
and its handling of Change Requests (CR).
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
vi
Introduction
This document provides comprehensive principles, rules and guidelines for the identification and
specification of individual languages or language groups, as well as for their coding. The ISO 639
language code comprises language code elements each consisting of one to three language identifiers,
one unique language reference name, zero or more language names in English and French, and a code
element scope. Each language identifier designates a recognized individual language or language group.
For historical reasons, the language identifiers have been organized into several sets. These sets
correspond to the code tables of the former ISO 639 series (all under the general title Codes for the
representation of individual languages and language groups). This document merges these sets into a
unified system of language code elements with one to three language identifiers each. Some language
identifiers belong to more than one of the following sets (for more details, see 5.2):
— Set 1 comprises two-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-1) for major,
mostly national individual languages. This set has evolved from normative documents published in
1967.
— Set 2 comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-2) for a
larger number of widely known individual languages. Set 2 includes all individual languages covered
by Set 1 and encompasses 20 language code elements for individual languages that each have two
different three-letter language identifiers: one for bibliographic use (2B) and one for terminological
use (2T). The latter distinction is based on documents widely used since the 1970s. It has emerged
from two diverging language coding initiatives in the fields of librarianship and documentation on
the one hand and terminology and other language applications on the other.
— Set 3 also comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-3)
and aims at covering comprehensively all individual languages (including all individual languages
covered by Set 2).
— Set 5 also comprises three-letter language identifiers (in accordance with the former ISO 639-5),
covering a larger set of language groups (including all language groups covered by Set 2). Set 5 was
established in 2008. All language identifiers for language groups in Set 2 also belong to Set 5.
These four sets of language identifiers of the ISO 639 language code are used by very large user
communities, which demands a high degree of coordinated code stability. Over the decades the
stakeholders involved in developing the ISO 639 language code have coordinated their activities
with the result that the currently valid language code elements constitute one single common code
space. This implies that all language code elements, independently of which set or sets their language
identifiers belong to, constitute the ISO 639 language code. Therefore, “code” occurs in the singular in
the title of this document.
The above-listed sets of language identifiers are accessible at the Language Coding Agencies (LCA)
hosting the data for the ISO 639 language code (see Annex B).
The language identifiers for individual languages or language groups can be used in a variety of
applications. These include the specification of the language used in a text, the language of terms
or words in a dictionary or terminology database, the language used in a spoken presentation, the
identification of language proficiency, the capability of handling human language in software, the
documentation of language resources, etc. The various sets of language identifiers are implemented in a
[12]
broad range of applications, including normative documents, such as those for IETF BCP 47 language
tags.
vii
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 639:2023(E)
Code for individual languages and language groups
1 Scope
This document specifies the ISO 639 language code and establishes the harmonized terminology and
general principles of language coding. It provides rules for the selection, formation, presentation and
use of language identifiers as well as language reference names. It also gives provisions (i.e. principles,
rules and guidelines) for the selection, formation and presentation of language names in English and
French. Furthermore, it introduces provisions for the adoption of standardized language code elements
using language names other than English or French.
NOTE English, French and Russian are the official ISO languages.
In addition, this document gives guidance on the use of language identifiers and describes their possible
combination with identifiers of other codes.
Specifically excluded from the ISO 639 language code are reconstructed languages or formal languages,
such as computer programming languages and markup languages.
The ISO 639 language code is maintained by the ISO 639 Maintenance Agency (ISO 639/MA) (see
Annex B).
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 3166-1, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country
code
ISO 15924, Information and documentation — Codes for the representation of names of scripts
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1 Terms related to language and individual languages
3.1.1
human language
means of communication characterized by a systematic use of sounds, visual-spatial signs, characters
or other written symbols or signs that can be combined to express or communicate meaning or a
message between humans
Note 1 to entry: Human language was originally developed for, and mainly used in, direct communication
between humans. Today its use is increasingly supported by information and communication technologies (ICTs).
Note 2 to entry: As the term “language” can represent different concepts, it is not listed as a synonym to the term
“human language”.
Note 3 to entry: Visual-spatial signs are indicated under signed modality (3.5.4).
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:— , 3.1.1]
3.1.2
idiolect
comprehensive set of all expressions of human language (3.1.1) with their meaning, characterized
by a coherent system of structural features, which is capable of coding complex facts and thoughts,
potentially used by a given individual person, in a given type of situation, at a given time, and in a given
medium
Note 1 to entry: Typically, a person has command of several idiolects of an individual language (3.1.3).
EXAMPLE 1 (hypothetical) The written informal American English used in the 1950s by a given person (an
adult working-class person with no academic training from Philadelphia, USA, who is a native speaker of English
and who does not show any particularly enhanced or constrained communicative functioning abilities).
EXAMPLE 2 (hypothetical) A given middle-aged renowned British academic in the field of linguistics in 2010:
a) speaking with received pronunciation at panel discussions with colleagues in academic conferences, and b)
discussing tennis tournaments with fellow tennis club members of the same town in the south-east of England.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.2, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened. Examples added to illustrate the
concept.]
3.1.3
individual language
individual human language
largest set of idiolects (3.1.2), used by different speakers (3.1.5), which are all interconnected through
high mutual intelligibility, or through a chain of high mutual intelligibility, or which are sociopolitically
considered as a unit equivalent to such a largest set
Note 1 to entry: Individual languages also encompass constructed languages (3.3.2), but do not include formal
languages (as defined in ISO 1087:2019, 3.1.10).
Note 2 to entry: Usually, in other contexts, individual languages are simply called “languages”. However, the term
“language” has multiple meanings and connotations, which can cause confusion in the context of this document.
Still, when an attribute and possibly the plural clearly indicate that individual languages are meant, this document
uses only “language(s)”, as in “creole languages”, “Asian languages” or “living languages” (3.3.3).
EXAMPLE English, Guarani, LIBRAS (Língua Brasileira de Sinais/Brazilian Sign Language), Haitian Creole,
Esperanto.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.3]
3.1.4
individual sign language
individual language (3.1.3) whose basic modality (3.5.5) is the signed modality (3.5.4)
Note 1 to entry: Usually “sign language” is part of the name of the respective individual sign language.
EXAMPLE American Sign Language (ASL), langue des signes québéquoise/Quebec Sign Language (LSQ).
Note 2 to entry: Individual sign languages differ from the “signed modality”, by which an individual language
can be expressed which is normally expressed in another language modality (3.5.1), such as by “Signing Exact
English” for expressing English. Therefore, the term “signed language” is not used as a synonym to the term
“individual sign language”.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.4]
1) Under preparation. Stage at the time of publication: ISO/DIS 21636-1:2023.
3.1.5
speaker
person who is capable of making use of an idiolect (3.1.2)
Note 1 to entry: The term “speaker” covers the use of all language modalities (3.5.1) and is thus used to denote
a generic concept “speaker”, also covering all specific concepts such as “writer”, “signer”, etc., which can be
introduced when needed.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.5, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened.]
3.1.6
language community
socially identifiable group that consists prototypically of the speakers (3.1.5) of an individual language
(3.1.3) or language variety (3.2.4) and whose members identify with that individual language or
language variety
Note 1 to entry: In the case of endangered languages, the speakers of the individual language can actually be a
minority of a language community.
3.2 Terms related to linguistic variation and language varieties
3.2.1
linguistic variation
language variation
differences within and between individual languages (3.1.3)
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.1]
3.2.2
external criterion for linguistic variation
set of properties of idiolects (3.1.2) that are based on factors external to the linguistic features of the
idiolects’ systems
Note 1 to entry: External criteria for linguistic variation contain properties of idiolects that pertain to the
speakers (3.1.5) who use the idiolects, or to the language use event (ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.6) in which the idiolects
are used.
EXAMPLE “Being characteristic of speakers from East Anglia” is a property which is the only element of an
external criterion for linguistic variation [in this case, a criterion related to geographical space (see the example
to ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.4), defining a certain dialect (3.2.5) of English].
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.2]
3.2.3
structural criterion for linguistic variation
set of properties of idiolects (3.1.2) that are based on the linguistic features of the idiolects’ systems
Note 1 to entry: This set of properties includes in particular phonetic, phonological, morphological, syntactic,
lexical, semantic or pragmatic properties.
Note 2 to entry: Elements of the structural criterion for linguistic variation are also called “markers”, e.g. in
ISO/TR 20694. The term “structural criterion for linguistic variation” is preferred because it integrates better
with the framework for linguistic variation (3.2.1) developed in the ISO 21636 series.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.3]
3.2.4
language variety
variety
largest subset of an individual language (3.1.3) that is internally consistent with
regard to both an external criterion for linguistic variation (3.2.2) and a structural criterion for linguistic
variation (3.2.3), and that can be identified and named
Note 1 to entry: Since terms such as “linguistic variation” (3.2.1), “language variation”, “linguistic variant”,
“language variant” or “linguistic variety” are also used to represent other concepts, only the term “language
variety” is used in this document.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.2.5]
3.2.5
dialect
language variety (3.2.4) specific to speakers (3.1.5) from a particular geographical location
or region
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.1, modified — Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.2.6
standard variety
language variety (3.2.4) recognized as standard or official by most speakers (3.1.5) across the
geographical area where the individual language (3.1.3) is spoken or used, or across a large part of that
geographical area where several dialects (3.2.5) are used
Note 1 to entry: A standard variety of an individual language is typically used in official or public communication
and in communication between users of different language varieties.
Note 2 to entry: A standard variety is often characterized by a high degree of standardization or normalization.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.2, modified — Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.3 Terms related to types of individual languages subject to language coding
3.3.1
natural language
individual language (3.1.3) which is or was in active use in a language community (3.1.6), passed on from
one generation of speakers (3.1.5) to the next
EXAMPLE Bambara, English, Haitian Creole, Latin, LIBRAS (Língua Brasileira de Sinais/Brazilian Sign
Language).
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.9]
3.3.2
constructed language
individual language (3.1.3) whose rules are explicitly established prior to its use
EXAMPLE Esperanto, Volapük, Quenya, Na’vi.
Note 1 to entry: Constructed languages do not include reconstructed languages (3.3.9), computer programming
languages, mark-up languages or similar formal languages.
Note 2 to entry: Some constructed languages are based on one or several natural languages (3.3.1) and are
therefore not artificial. Therefore, the term “artificial language”, which is often used as a synonym, is not used in
this document.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.1.10]
3.3.3
living language
individual language (3.1.3) used by a language community (3.1.6) at the present time
EXAMPLE English, Bambara.
Note 1 to entry: Living languages include previously extinct languages (3.3.4) that have been revitalized, such as
Hebrew or Manx.
3.3.4
extinct language
individual language (3.1.3) that is no longer in use and that has lost its last native speaker (3.1.5) in
recent centuries
EXAMPLE Old Prussian, Amanayé, Basay.
3.3.5
historical language
individual language (3.1.3) that went out of use before modern times
EXAMPLE Old English, Middle English, Ancient Greek, Etruscan.
Note 1 to entry: Historical languages include known earlier epochs of a living language (3.3.3) or of an extinct
language (3.3.4).
3.3.6
full language
individual language (3.1.3) that is used in a variety of domains, used to support communication
across most or all social groups, such as genders and age groups of a language community (3.1.6), and
stable enough to have at least one language variety (3.2.4) that is widely understood across the whole
geographical area of the individual language
Note 1 to entry: Full languages are subject to gradual change as each new generation makes their individual
language its own.
3.3.7
restricted language
language variety (3.2.4) of an individual language (3.1.3) or constructed language (3.3.2) that resembles
in some contexts an individual language, but that is not a full language (3.3.6) in that it is used in limited
circumstances
Note 1 to entry: Restricted languages are, for instance, avoidance languages, secret languages, ceremonial
languages, play languages, urban languages or youth languages.
3.3.8
macrolanguage
individual language (3.1.3) that for the purpose of language coding can be subdivided into two or more
other individual languages
EXAMPLE In some contexts, Chinese is declared as the individual language of documents written in Han
ideographic script (3.6.2), while the language of the document can be Mandarin, Yue, Wu or any other related
individual language of China.
Note 1 to entry: In contrast to language groups (3.4.1), the individual languages that correspond to a macrolanguage
shall be very closely related, and there shall be some context in which they are deemed recognizable as separate
individual languages.
Note 2 to entry: Language development can change the relationship between a macrolanguage and related
individual languages or dialects (3.2.5) over time.
3.3.9
reconstructed language
hypothetical individual language (3.1.3) that is not itself attested but postulated based on regular
correspondences among a group of attested languages, of which the hypothetical language is held to be
a common ancestral language
EXAMPLE Proto-Indo-European, Proto-Germanic.
3.4 Terms related to language groups subject to language coding
3.4.1
language group
set of individual languages (3.1.3) based on a shared characteristic
EXAMPLE “Caucasian languages” (geographical group of languages); “North Caucasian languages” [language
family (3.4.2)].
Note 1 to entry: Shared characteristics include, but are not limited to, being spoken in the same geographical
region, being genetically related [i.e. being (a branch of) a language family] or sharing typological characteristics
such as being a tonal language or being a morphologically isolating language, or combinations thereof.
Note 2 to entry: A language group can encompass several smaller language groups.
Note 3 to entry: An identified language group is a group of individual languages that does not correspond to a
macrolanguage (3.3.8). It can contain macrolanguages among its members.
3.4.2
language family
language group (3.4.1) encompassing individual languages (3.1.3) based on a common ancestral language
EXAMPLE North Caucasian languages.
Note 1 to entry: It is possible for a language family to consist of a single individual language as a member.
3.5 Terms related to modalities of language use
3.5.1
language modality
language variety (3.2.4) specific to a certain medium or channel used for communication by the speaker
(3.1.5)
Note 1 to entry: As specified in ISO 21636-1, language modalities encompass the spoken modality (3.5.2), the
written modality (3.5.3), the signed modality (3.5.4), the drummed modality, the whistled modality, etc. This
document refers only to the spoken modality, the written modality and the signed modality.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.4.7, modified — Notes 1 to 3 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry.]
3.5.2
spoken modality
spoken language modality
language modality (3.5.1) used in oral communication, and that has as its primary mode of expression
the articulated sounds of the speaker’s (3.1.5) voice
Note 1 to entry: Events of language use in the spoken modality are usually also multimodal, as gestures, facial
expressions and other similar phenomena almost always accompany speech.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.1, modified — Notes 1 to 3 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry.]
3.5.3
written modality
written language modality
language modality (3.5.1) that makes use of a system of graphic symbols
Note 1 to entry: Some constructed languages (3.3.2) have the written modality as their basic modality (3.5.5), but
in natural languages (3.3.1), the spoken modality (3.5.2) or signed modality (3.5.4) are basic modalities from which
the written modality is derived.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.3, modified — Note 2 to entry deleted.]
3.5.4
signed modality
signed language modality
visual-spatial language modality (3.5.1) that uses a combination of hand shapes, palm orientation and
movement of the hand, arm, mouth, head or body, and facial expression
Note 1 to entry: The language modality “signed modality” differs from “individual sign language” (3.1.4), which
designates those individual languages (3.1.3) whose basic modality (3.5.5) is the signed modality.
Note 2 to entry: The signed modality is the basic modality for individual sign languages, but some other individual
languages also have a signed modality.
EXAMPLE Signing Exact English, the signed modality for expressing (spoken or written) English.
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.4, modified — Last part of Note 1 to entry deleted.]
3.5.5
basic modality
basic language modality
language modality (3.5.1) in which a particular individual language (3.1.3) is most commonly used, in
which it develops, and from which other language modalities (if any) of that individual language are
derived
Note 1 to entry: For most natural languages (3.3.1), the basic modality is the spoken modality (3.5.2); in particular,
the written modality (3.5.3) is derived from the spoken modality in the sense that in these natural languages
writing is a representation of properties of oral language use [even in the case of non-alphabetic writing systems
(3.6.1)].
Note 2 to entry: For individual sign languages (3.1.4), the basic modality is the signed modality (3.5.4). If these are
written or otherwise graphically represented, the written modality is derived from the signed modality in the
sense that writing is a representation of properties of visual-spatial language use (i.e. of the signed modality).
[SOURCE: ISO 21636-1:—, 3.5.11, modified — Note 1 to entry shortened and Note 3 to entry deleted.]
3.6 Terms related to written representation of individual languages
3.6.1
writing system
system for writing an individual language (3.1.3), including the script (3.6.2) and orthographic
conventions used
3.6.2
script
comprehensive set of graphic characters used for the written form of one or more
individual languages (3.1.3)
EXAMPLE Cyrillic, Hiragana.
Note 1 to entry: A script, as opposed to an arbitrary subset of characters, is defined in distinction to other scripts;
in general, readers of one script can be unable to read the glyphs of another script easily, even where there is a
historical relation between them.
3.6.3
script identifier
script symbol
string of characters assigned to represent a script (3.6.2) unequivocally
3.7 Terms related to language coding and naming languages
3.7.1
code
collection of rules that maps the elements of a first set of values onto the elements of one or more
different sets
Note 1 to entry: The first set of elements in the ISO 639 language code refers to individual languages (3.1.3)
or language groups (3.4.1). The sets of elements mapped onto are code values, specifically language identifiers
(3.7.10).
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 2382:2015, 2121552, modified — Admitted term “coding scheme” deleted. “first set
of values onto the elements of one or more different sets” replaced “first set onto the elements of a
second set” in the definition. Notes 1 to 2 to entry replaced by a new Note 1 to entry. Notes 3 to 5 to
entry deleted.]
3.7.2
code element
collection of structured information about an entity represented in a code (3.7.1)
3.7.3
language code
code (3.7.1) that maps individual languages (3.1.3) or language groups (3.4.1), represented by their
unique language reference name (3.7.13), to language identifiers (3.7.10)
EXAMPLE The ISO 639 language code.
Note 1 to entry: The activity and subject of developing a language code is called “language coding”.
3.7.4
language code element
code element (3.7.2) of a language code (3.7.3) that represents an individual language (3.1.3) or a language
group (3.4.1)
EXAMPLE “Efik” [language reference name (3.7.13)], “Efik” [language name (3.7.12) in English], “efik”
(language name in French), “efi” [language identifier (3.7.10)] and the information on the code element scope
(3.7.5) “individual language” together constitute a language code element.
Note 1 to entry: A language code element is composed of a minimum of one unique language reference name and
one or more language identifiers that belong to one or more sets.
Note 2 to entry: Language code elements cited in this document each represent an individual language or
language group. In addition to the language code elements, the ISO 639 language code also contains four special-
purpose code elements (3.7.9).
3.7.5
code element scope
attribute of a code element (3.7.2) that documents the way in which its denotation maps onto one or
more individual languages (3.1.3)
Note 1 to entry: There are four code element scopes: individual-language code element (3.7.6), macrolanguage code
element (3.7.7), language-group code element (3.7.8) and special-purpose code element (3.7.9).
3.7.6
individual-language code element
language code element (3.7.4) with a value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for an individual language
(3.1.3)
Note 1 to entry: The individual language represented by an individual-language code element is considered
distinct from any other individual language represented by a different individual-language code element.
Note 2 to entry: An individual-language code element represents an individual language that is not a
macrolanguage (3.3.8).
3.7.7
macrolanguage code element
language code element (3.7.4) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for a macrolanguage (3.3.8)
Note 1 to entry: A macrolanguage code element represents an individual language (3.1.3) that is a macrolanguage.
3.7.8
language-group code element
language code element (3.7.4) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for a language group (3.4.1)
Note 1 to entry: A language-group code element represents a group of individual languages (3.1.3) that does not
correspond to a macrolanguage (3.3.8).
3.7.9
special-purpose code element
language code element (3.7.4) of a language code (3.7.3) with the value of a code element scope (3.7.5) for
a special purpose
EXAMPLE mul – multiple languages in the content.
Note 1 to entry: A special-purpose code element does not refer to any individual language (3.1.3) or language
group (3.4.1) identified in the ISO 639 language code but is useful for data management purposes.
3.7.10
language identifier
language symbol
string of characters assigned to an individual language (3.1.3) or a language group (3.4.1) for the purpose
of identifying it unequivocally
Note 1 to entry: In the ISO 639 language code, the string of characters consists of a string of letters.
Note 2 to entry: When a single language code element (3.7.4) has multiple language identifiers, the language
identifiers are synonymous, while each of them identifies the individual language or language group
unequivocally.
EXAMPLE The individual language “Dutch” is assigned the two-letter language identifier “nl”, a three-
letter identifier “nld” for use in the field of terminology and other language applications, and another three-
letter identifier “dut” for use in the field of librarianship and documentation. The individual language “Polish” is
assigned the two-letter language identifier “pl” and the three-letter identifier “pol”. The language group “Khoisan
languages” is assigned the three-letter language identifier “khi”.
3.7.11
local-use language identifier
language identifier (3.7.10) reserved for local use
EXAMPLE “qij” (designating “Akeu”) temporarily used locally in place of a permanent language identifier.
Note 1 to entry: Local-use language identifiers are not part of any assigned language code element (3.7.4).
Note 2 to entry: All local-use language identifiers are composed of three letters.
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