Root Zone Database

About the Root Zone Database

The DNS root zone is the top-level of the Domain Name System hierarchy. It contains the authoritative list of all top-level domains (TLDs) that exist on the internet. This database is maintained by IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority).

TLD Types

• • Generic (gTLD): 1021 - Available for general use (.com, .net, .org, .app)
• • Country Code (ccTLD): 248 - Two-letter country codes (.us, .uk, .jp, .de)
• • IDN: 151 - Internationalized Domain Names in native scripts (.世界, .संगठन, .ευ)
• • Sponsored (sTLD): 14 - Community-sponsored (.edu, .gov, .mil, .aero, .museum)
• • Generic-Restricted: 3 - With registration restrictions (.biz, .name, .pro)
• • Infrastructure: 1 - Internet infrastructure (.arpa)
• • Test: 15 - Reserved for testing (.test, .example, and 11 IDN test TLDs)

Services

• • WHOIS: Traditional protocol for domain queries (Port 43)
• • RDAP: Modern RESTful API with JSON responses (HTTPS)
• • RDAP is gradually replacing WHOIS with better internationalization

Internationalized Domain Names (IDN)

IDN TLDs allow domains in native scripts (Arabic, Chinese, Cyrillic, etc.). They use Punycode encoding (xn--) for DNS compatibility.

• • .xn--rhqv96g → .世界 (Chinese: World)
• • .xn--node → .คอม (Thai: com)
• • .xn--p1ai → .рф (Russian: RF)
• • Search works with both formats (Punycode or Unicode)

Popular Repurposed ccTLDs

Some country code TLDs are marketed globally for specific purposes:

• • .io - British Indian Ocean Territory (tech startups)
• • .ai - Anguilla (AI companies)
• • .co - Colombia (alternative to .com)
• • .tv - Tuvalu (television/video)
• • .me - Montenegro (personal sites)