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The ISO 639-2 Language Code List
ISO 639-2 is part of the ISO 639 language code standards, which exist to identify the languages, dialects and languages scripts around the world. ISO 639-2 has three-letter codes for languages.
What are ISO language standards
ISO 639 language codes were released by ISO (International Organization for Standardization). ISO standards are the most frequently used linguistic codification - from language recognition to translation, ISO language codes have proven to be crucial for neural learning.
ISO 639 language codes exist to provide an international standardization of linguistic codes.
The ISO 639-2 standard was released for the first time in 1998, as a build up of ISO 639-1. The ISO 639-1 language provides a list of two-letter identifiers of mostly macro languages. On the other hand, the ISO 639-2 standard provides a more extensive list and a three-letter codification.
ISO 639-2 Language Code List
The full ISO 639-2 language code list is available below.
It includes:
Individual languages (living, extinct, ancient, historic, constructed languages)
Macrolanguages - a group of linguistically varied dialects within one “umbrella language“.
Language collections - or collective language codes refer to languages which have a similarity, but not a high enough level of similarity to be considered dialects (example, Germanic, Slavic languages)
Special situations (uncoded or miscellaneous, undetermined languages, non linguistic content)
| ISO 639-2 Code Language & Language Names | ISO 639-2 Code Language & Language Names | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| aar | Afar | lad | Ladino |
| abk | Abkhazian | lah | Lahnda |
| ace | Achinese | lam | Lamba |
| ach | Acoli | lao | Lao |
| ada | Adangme | lat | Latin |
| ady | Adyghe; Adygei | lav | Latvian |
| afa | Afro-Asiatic languages | lez | Lezghian |
| afh | Afrihili | lim | Limburgan; Limburger; Limburgish |
| afr | Afrikaans | lin | Lingala |
| ain | Ainu | lit | Lithuanian |
| aka | Akan | lol | Mongo |
| akk | Akkadian | loz | Lozi |
| alb (B), sqi (T) | Albanian | ltz | Luxembourgish; Letzeburgesch |
| ale | Aleut | lua | Luba-Lulua |
| alg | Algonquian languages | lub | Luba-Katanga |
| alt | Southern Altai | lug | Ganda |
| amh | Amharic | lui | Luiseno |
| ang | English, Old (ca.450-1100) | lun | Lunda |
| anp | Angika | luo | Luo (Kenya and Tanzania) |
| apa | Apache languages | lus | Lushai |
| ara | Arabic | mac (B), mkd (T) | Macedonian |
| arc | Official Aramaic (700-300 BCE); Imperial Aramaic (700-300 BCE) | mad | Madurese |
| arg | Aragonese | mag | Magahi |
| arm (B), hye (T) | Armenian | mah | Marshallese |
| arn | Mapudungun; Mapuche | mai | Maithili |
| arp | Arapaho | mak | Makasar |
| art | Artificial languages | mal | Malayalam |
| arw | Arawak | man | Mandingo |
| asm | Assamese | mao (B), mri (T) | Maori |
| ast | Asturian; Bable; Leonese; Asturleonese | map | Austronesian languages |
| ath | Athapascan languages | mar | Marathi |
| aus | Australian languages | mas | Masai |
| ava | Avaric | may (B), msa (T) | Malay |
| ave | Avestan | mdf | Moksha |
| awa | Awadhi | mdr | Mandar |
| aym | Aymara | men | Mende |
| aze | Azerbaijani | mga | Irish, Middle (900-1200) |
| bad | Banda languages | mic | Mi'kmaq; Micmac |
| bai | Bamileke languages | min | Minangkabau |
| bak | Bashkir | mis | Uncoded languages |
| bal | Baluchi | mac (B), mkd (T) | Macedonian |
| bam | Bambara | mkh | Mon-Khmer languages |
| ban | Balinese | mlg | Malagasy |
| baq (B), eus (T) | Basque | mlt | Maltese |
| bas | Basa | mnc | Manchu |
| bat | Baltic languages | mni | Manipuri |
| bej | Beja; Bedawiyet | mno | Manobo languages |
| bel | Belarusian | moh | Mohawk |
| bem | Bemba | mon | Mongolian |
| ben | Bengali | mos | Mossi |
| ber | Berber languages | mao (B), mri (T) | Maori |
| bho | Bhojpuri | may (B), msa (T) | Malay |
| bih | Bihari languages | mul | Multiple languages |
| bik | Bikol | mun | Munda languages |
| bin | Bini; Edo | mus | Creek |
| bis | Bislama | mwl | Mirandese |
| bla | Siksika | mwr | Marwari |
| bnt | Bantu languages | bur (B), mya (T) | Burmese |
| tib (B), bod (T) | Tibetan | myn | Mayan languages |
| bos | Bosnian | myv | Erzya |
| bra | Braj | nah | Nahuatl languages |
| bre | Breton | nai | North American Indian languages |
| btk | Batak languages | nap | Neapolitan |
| bua | Buriat | nau | Nauru |
| bug | Buginese | nav | Navajo; Navaho |
| bul | Bulgarian | nbl | Ndebele, South; South Ndebele |
| bur (B), mya (T) | Burmese | nde | Ndebele, North; North Ndebele |
| byn | Blin; Bilin | ndo | Ndonga |
| cad | Caddo | nds | Low German; Low Saxon; |
| cai | Central American Indian languages | nep | Nepali |
| car | Galibi Carib | new | Nepal Bhasa; Newari |
| cat | Catalan; Valencian | nia | Nias |
| cau | Caucasian languages | nic | Niger-Kordofanian languages |
| ceb | Cebuano | niu | Niuean |
| cel | Celtic languages | dut (B), nld (T) | Dutch; Flemish |
| cze (B), ces (T) | Czech | nno | Norwegian Nynorsk; Nynorsk, Norwegian |
| cha | Chamorro | nob | Bokmål, Norwegian; Norwegian Bokmål |
| chb | Chibcha | nog | Nogai |
| che | Chechen | non | Norse, Old |
| chg | Chagatai | nor | Norwegian |
| chi (B), zho (T) | Chinese | nqo | N'Ko |
| chk | Chuukese | nso | Pedi; Sepedi; Northern Sotho |
| chm | Mari | nub | Nubian languages |
| chn | Chinook jargon | nwc | Classical/Old Newari; Classical Nepal Bhasa |
| cho | Choctaw | nya | Chichewa; Chewa; Nyanja |
| chp | Chipewyan; Dene Suline | nym | Nyamwezi |
| chr | Cherokee | nyn | Nyankole |
| chu | Church Slavic; Old Slavonic; Church Slavonic; Old Bulgarian | nyo | Nyoro |
| chv | Chuvash | nzi | Nzima |
| chy | Cheyenne | oci | Occitan (post 1500) |
| cmc | Chamic languages | oji | Ojibwa |
| cnr | Montenegrin | ori | Oriya |
| cop | Coptic | orm | Oromo |
| cor | Cornish | osa | Osage |
| cos | Corsican | oss | Ossetian; Ossetic |
| cpe | Creoles and pidgins, English based | ota | Turkish, Ottoman (1500-1928) |
| cpf | Creoles and pidgins, French-based | oto | Otomian languages |
| cpp | Creoles and pidgins, Portuguese-based | paa | Papuan languages |
| cre | Cree | pag | Pangasinan |
| crh | Crimean Tatar; Crimean Turkish | pal | Pahlavi |
| crp | Creoles and pidgins | pam | Pampanga; Kapampangan |
| csb | Kashubian | pan | Panjabi; Punjabi |
| cus | Cushitic languages | pap | Papiamento |
| wel (B), cym (T) | Welsh | pau | Palauan |
| cze (B), ces (T) | Czech | peo | Persian, Old (ca.600-400 B.C.) |
| dak | Dakota | per (B), fas (T) | Persian |
| dan | Danish | phi | Philippine languages |
| dar | Dargwa | phn | Phoenician |
| day | Land Dayak languages | pli | Pali |
| del | Delaware | pol | Polish |
| den | Slave (Athapascan) | pon | Pohnpeian |
| ger (B), deu (T) | German | por | Portuguese |
| dgr | Dogrib | pra | Prakrit languages |
| din | Dinka | pro | Provençal, Old (to 1500); Occitan, Old (to 1500) |
| div | Divehi; Dhivehi; Maldivian | pus | Pushto; Pashto |
| doi | Dogri | qaa-qtz | Reserved for local use |
| dra | Dravidian languages | que | Quechua |
| dsb | Lower Sorbian | raj | Rajasthani |
| dua | Duala | rap | Rapanui |
| dum | Dutch, Middle (ca.1050-1350) | rar | Rarotongan; Cook Islands Maori |
| dut (B), nld (T) | Dutch; Flemish | roa | Romance languages |
| dyu | Dyula | roh | Romansh |
| dzo | Dzongkha | rom | Romany |
| efi | Efik | rum (B), ron (T) | Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan |
| egy | Egyptian (Ancient) | rum (B), ron (T) | Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan |
| eka | Ekajuk | run | Rundi |
| gre (B), ell (T) | Greek, Modern (1453-) | rup | Aromanian; Arumanian; Macedo-Romanian |
| elx | Elamite | rus | Russian |
| eng | English | sad | Sandawe |
| enm | English, Middle (1100-1500) | sag | Sango |
| epo | Esperanto | sah | Yakut |
| est | Estonian | sai | South American Indian languages |
| baq (B), eus (T) | Basque | sal | Salishan languages |
| ewe | Ewe | sam | Samaritan Aramaic |
| ewo | Ewondo | san | Sanskrit |
| fan | Fang | sas | Sasak |
| fao | Faroese | sat | Santali |
| per (B), fas (T) | Persian | scn | Sicilian |
| fat | Fanti | sco | Scots |
| fij | Fijian | sel | Selkup |
| fil | Filipino; Pilipino | sem | Semitic languages |
| fin | Finnish | sga | Irish, Old (to 900) |
| fiu | Finno-Ugrian languages | sgn | Sign Languages |
| fon | Fon | shn | Shan |
| fre (B), fra (T) | French | sid | Sidamo |
| fre (B), fra (T) | French | sin | Sinhala; Sinhalese |
| frm | French, Middle (ca.1400-1600) | sio | Siouan languages |
| fro | French, Old (842-ca.1400) | sit | Sino-Tibetan languages |
| frr | Northern Frisian | sla | Slavic languages |
| frs | Eastern Frisian | slo (B), slk (T) | Slovak |
| fry | Western Frisian | slo (B), slk (T) | Slovak |
| ful | Fulah | slv | Slovenian |
| fur | Friulian | sma | Southern Sami |
| gaa | Ga | sme | Northern Sami |
| gay | Gayo | smi | Sami languages |
| gba | Gbaya | smj | Lule Sami |
| gem | Germanic languages | smn | Inari Sami |
| geo (B), kat (T) | Georgian | smo | Samoan |
| ger (B), deu (T) | German | sms | Skolt Sami |
| gez | Geez | sna | Shona |
| gil | Gilbertese | snd | Sindhi |
| gla | Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic | snk | Soninke |
| gle | Irish | sog | Sogdian |
| glg | Galician | som | Somali |
| glv | Manx | son | Songhai languages |
| gmh | German, Middle High (ca.1050-1500) | sot | Sotho, Southern |
| goh | German, Old High (ca.750-1050) | spa | Spanish; Castilian |
| gon | Gondi | alb (B), sqi (T) | Albanian |
| gor | Gorontalo | srd | Sardinian |
| got | Gothic | srn | Sranan Tongo |
| grb | Grebo | srp | Serbian |
| grc | Greek, Ancient (to 1453) | srr | Serer |
| gre (B), ell (T) | Greek, Modern (1453-) | ssa | Nilo-Saharan languages |
| grn | Guarani | ssw | Swati |
| gsw | Swiss German; Alemannic; Alsatian | suk | Sukuma |
| guj | Gujarati | sun | Sundanese |
| gwi | Gwich'in | sus | Susu |
| hai | Haida | sux | Sumerian |
| hat | Haitian; Haitian Creole | swa | Swahili |
| hau | Hausa | swe | Swedish |
| haw | Hawaiian | syc | Classical Syriac |
| heb | Hebrew | syr | Syriac |
| her | Herero | tah | Tahitian |
| hil | Hiligaynon | tai | Tai languages |
| him | Himachali languages; Western Pahari languages | tam | Tamil |
| hin | Hindi | tat | Tatar |
| hit | Hittite | tel | Telugu |
| hmn | Hmong; Mong | tem | Timne |
| hmo | Hiri Motu | ter | Tereno |
| hrv | Croatian | tet | Tetum |
| hsb | Upper Sorbian | tgk | Tajik |
| hun | Hungarian | tgl | Tagalog |
| hup | Hupa | tha | Thai |
| arm (B), hye (T) | Armenian | tib (B), bod (T) | Tibetan |
| iba | Iban | tig | Tigre |
| ibo | Igbo | tir | Tigrinya |
| ice (B), isl (T) | Icelandic | tiv | Tiv |
| ido | Ido | tkl | Tokelau |
| iii | Sichuan Yi; Nuosu | tlh | Klingon; tlhIngan-Hol |
| ijo | Ijo languages | tli | Tlingit |
| iku | Inuktitut | tmh | Tamashek |
| ile | Interlingue; Occidental | tog | Tonga (Nyasa) |
| ilo | Iloko | ton | Tonga (Tonga Islands) |
| ina | Interlingua (International Auxiliary Language Association) | tpi | Tok Pisin |
| inc | Indic languages | tsi | Tsimshian |
| ind | Indonesian | tsn | Tswana |
| ine | Indo-European languages | tso | Tsonga |
| inh | Ingush | tuk | Turkmen |
| ipk | Inupiaq | tum | Tumbuka |
| ira | Iranian languages | tup | Tupi languages |
| iro | Iroquoian languages | tur | Turkish |
| ice (B), isl (T) | Icelandic | tut | Altaic languages |
| ita | Italian | tvl | Tuvalu |
| jav | Javanese | twi | Twi |
| jbo | Lojban | tyv | Tuvinian |
| jpn | Japanese | udm | Udmurt |
| jpr | Judeo-Persian | uga | Ugaritic |
| jrb | Judeo-Arabic | uig | Uighur; Uyghur |
| kaa | Kara-Kalpak | ukr | Ukrainian |
| kab | Kabyle | umb | Umbundu |
| kac | Kachin; Jingpho | und | Undetermined |
| kal | Kalaallisut; Greenlandic | urd | Urdu |
| kam | Kamba | uzb | Uzbek |
| kan | Kannada | vai | Vai |
| kar | Karen languages | ven | Venda |
| kas | Kashmiri | vie | Vietnamese |
| geo (B), kat (T) | Georgian | vol | Volapük |
| kau | Kanuri | vot | Votic |
| kaw | Kawi | wak | Wakashan languages |
| kaz | Kazakh | wal | Wolaitta; Wolaytta |
| kbd | Kabardian | war | Waray |
| kha | Khasi | was | Washo |
| khi | Khoisan languages | wel (B), cym (T) | Welsh |
| khm | Central Khmer | wen | Sorbian languages |
| kho | Khotanese; Sakan | wln | Walloon |
| kik | Kikuyu; Gikuyu | wol | Wolof |
| kin | Kinyarwanda | xal | Kalmyk; Oirat |
| kir | Kirghiz; Kyrgyz | xho | Xhosa |
| kmb | Kimbundu | yao | Yao |
| kok | Konkani | yap | Yapese |
| kom | Komi | yid | Yiddish |
| kon | Kongo | yor | Yoruba |
| kor | Korean | ypk | Yupik languages |
| kos | Kosraean | zap | Zapotec |
| kpe | Kpelle | zbl | Blissymbols; Blissymbolics; Bliss |
| krc | Karachay-Balkar | zen | Zenaga |
| krl | Karelian | zgh | Standard Moroccan Tamazight |
| kro | Kru languages | zha | Zhuang; Chuang |
| kru | Kurukh | chi (B), zho (T) | Chinese |
| kua | Kuanyama; Kwanyama | znd | Zande languages |
| kum | Kumyk | zul | Zulu |
| kur | Kurdish | zun | Zuni |
| kut | Kutenai | zxx | No linguistic content; Not applicable |
| zza | Zaza; Dimili; Dimli; Kirdki; Kirmanjki; Zazaki | ||
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