ISO Language Codes

ISO 639-1 & 639-2 language codes with native names.

A searchable list of ISO 639 language codes — the 2-letter (639-1) and 3-letter (639-2) codes for the world's widely used languages, with the English and native name. Used in HTML lang attributes, hreflang tags, locales, APIs and translation files. Search a language or a code, and tap to copy. Runs fully in your browser — no API.

How to use ISO Language Codes

  1. Open the list

    Launch this free ISO language codes tool to look up 2- and 3-letter language codes in one searchable table.

  2. Search a language

    Type a language like Hindi or Spanish, or a code like 'en' or 'spa', to find it.

  3. Pick the code you need

    Use the 2-letter ISO 639-1 code for HTML/hreflang, or the 3-letter 639-2 code where required.

  4. Read the native name

    Each language shows its own native spelling alongside the English name.

  5. Copy the code

    Tap the code or name to copy it, ready for your lang attribute, locale or config.

  6. Localise your site

    Use the codes to set up multi-language pages, hreflang tags and translation files.

Frequently asked questions

What are ISO language codes?

ISO 639 language codes are standard short codes that identify languages. ISO 639-1 uses two letters (like 'en' for English, 'hi' for Hindi), and ISO 639-2 uses three letters (like 'eng', 'hin'). They're used across the web and software to tag content by language.

What is the language code for English and Hindi?

English is 'en' (ISO 639-1) or 'eng' (ISO 639-2); Hindi is 'hi' or 'hin'. Search this list for any language to find both codes and its native name.

When should I use the 2-letter vs 3-letter code?

Use the 2-letter ISO 639-1 code for HTML lang attributes, hreflang tags and most web/locale settings. The 3-letter ISO 639-2 code is used where a language has no 2-letter code, or in bibliographic and some technical contexts.

What is the difference between a language code and a locale?

A language code identifies just the language (like 'en'), while a locale combines a language with a region (like 'en-US' or 'en-GB') to also capture spelling, date and number conventions. This tool provides the language part.

Is this language codes tool free?

Yes — it's completely free with no sign-up. The list runs in your browser from a built-in dataset, so there are no limits, no API keys and nothing is uploaded.

What is the language code for Spanish, French or German?

Spanish is 'es' (spa), French is 'fr' (fra/fre) and German is 'de' (deu/ger). Search any language in the list to find both its ISO 639-1 (2-letter) and ISO 639-2 (3-letter) codes and its native name.

Which language code should I use in an HTML lang attribute?

Use the 2-letter ISO 639-1 code, e.g. <html lang="en"> for English or lang="hi" for Hindi. For a specific region, add the country: lang="en-US". This makes screen readers, search engines and browsers handle your page's language correctly.

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