Country & Language Code Reference

Language codes and locale tags answer different questions

A language code identifies a language; a language tag can add more context such as script or region. For example, en identifies English, while en-US is a complete language tag with a region subtag. BCP 47 language tags use hyphen-separated subtags. ISO 639-1 uses two-letter language codes where assigned, and ISO 639-2 provides three-letter codes. The Library of Congress maintains the ISO 639-2 code list and documents the distinction between these code lengths.

This page is a quick reference table, not a complete standards registry. Its current set contains 81 preloaded entries with Chinese, English, and native names, two code columns, and common locale-tag examples. Search filters these fields by contained text, without generating new tags.

Find and copy the field you need

1. Search by name or identifier

   Enter a language name, native name, code, or tag fragment such as Japanese, eng, or en-US. Matching is a case-insensitive contained-text search across the visible reference fields.

2. Confirm the target field

   Check whether your destination expects a two-letter ISO 639-1 code, a three-letter ISO 639-2 code, or a complete language tag. These values are related but not interchangeable.

3. Copy and verify

   Copy from the matching column. For production configuration, standards-sensitive exchange, or an unusual variant, check the appropriate official list or registry rather than relying on this sample table alone.

Choosing the right identifier

Check the identifier before using it

Code lists and language-tag registries serve different purposes and are maintained separately. The table is limited and may contain data-entry mistakes; for example, the Filipino row places fil in both code columns, while the Library of Congress lists fil as an ISO 639-2 code and leaves its ISO 639-1 field blank. Confirm the exact identifier against the target standard before using it in APIs, page metadata, or long-lived datasets.