.us
Encyclopedia
.us is the Internet
country code
top-level domain
(ccTLD
) for the United States
and was established in 1985. Registrants of .us domains must be United States citizens, residents, or organizations, or a foreign entity with a presence in the United States. Most registrants in the country have registered for .com
, .net
, .org
and other gTLD
s, instead of .us, which has primarily been used by state and local governments despite any entity having the option of registering a .us domain.
of the Information Sciences Institute
(ISI) at the University of Southern California
(USC). He administered .us under a subcontract that the ISI and USC had from SRI International
(which held the .us and the gTLD contract with the United States Department of Defense
) and later Network Solutions
(which held the .us and the gTLD contract with the National Science Foundation
). Registrants could only register third-level domains or higher in a geographic and organizational hierarchy. The vast majority of the geographic subdomains in .us were delegated to various private entities and .us registrants could register with the delegated administrator for the level they wished to register in, but not directly with the .us administrator.
In April 2002, second-level domains under .us became available for registration. The .us domain is currently administered by NeuStar Inc. under a United States Department of Commerce
contract.
, federal territory, and the District of Columbia has a reserved two-letter second-level domain
based on the International Organization for Standardization
Standard ISO 3166-2:US
for the United States. For example, .ny.us is reserved for websites affiliated with New York
and .va.us for those affiliated with Virginia
. However, some state administrations prefer usage of .gov
domains or others; e.g., California
’s chief website is located at www.ca.gov instead of www.state.ca.us, and Massachusetts
' chief website is located at www.mass.gov instead of www.state.ma.us.
Additionally, the territories of the US have their own ccTLDs: .as
for American Samoa
, .gu for Guam
, .mp
for Northern Mariana Islands
, .pr
for Puerto Rico
, and .vi
for the United States Virgin Islands
. These operate alongside or in preference to their .us subdomains (i.e., .as.us, .gu.us, .mp.us, .pr.us, and .vi.us, respectively).
Four values of <organization-name> have specific meanings:
Ordinarily, a <locality> is a city, county, parish, or township.
Some other names may replace the <locality>:
In some cases, and may be combined into a single namespace—for example, many Kentucky school districts have a name of the form area.<kyschools>.us, and even those districts that have a different URL use that form as a redirect to their actual URL. For two examples in the same Kentucky county, Paducah Public Schools
are at http://paducah.kyschools.us, while the McCracken County Public Schools
use mccracken.kyschools.us as a redirect to their actual URL of http://www.mccrackencountyschools.net.
As noted above, registration of a subdomain in this space may depend on the cooperation of a private delegate. Many mainstream registration companies do not offer domains in this space, which may account for the low utilization rate.
To ensure that these requirements are met, NeuStar
frequently conducts "spot checks" on registrant information.
To prevent anonymous registrations that do not meet these requirements, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
has ruled that registrants of .us domains may not secure private domain name registration http://www.americansdeserveprivacy.com/.
Registrants are required to provide complete contact information without omissions. http://www.neustar.us/content/download/2659/32865/ustld_nexus_requirements.pdf
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
country code
Country code
Country codes are short alphabetic or numeric geographical codes developed to represent countries and dependent areas, for use in data processing and communications. Several different systems have been developed to do this. The best known of these is ISO 3166-1...
top-level domain
Top-level domain
A top-level domain is one of the domains at the highest level in the hierarchical Domain Name System of the Internet. The top-level domain names are installed in the root zone of the name space. For all domains in lower levels, it is the last part of the domain name, that is, the last label of a...
(ccTLD
Country code top-level domain
A country code top-level domain is an Internet top-level domain generally used or reserved for a country, a sovereign state, or a dependent territory....
) for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and was established in 1985. Registrants of .us domains must be United States citizens, residents, or organizations, or a foreign entity with a presence in the United States. Most registrants in the country have registered for .com
.com
The domain name com is a generic top-level domain in the Domain Name System of the Internet. Its name is derived from commercial, indicating its original intended purpose for domains registered by commercial organizations...
, .net
.net
The domain name net is a generic top-level domain used in the Domain Name System of the Internet. The name is derived from network, indicating its originally intended purpose for organizations involved in networking technologies, such as Internet service providers and other infrastructure companies...
, .org
.org
The domain name org is a generic top-level domain of the Domain Name System used in the Internet. The name is derived from organization....
and other gTLD
Generic top-level domain
A generic top-level domain is one of the categories of top-level domains maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet....
s, instead of .us, which has primarily been used by state and local governments despite any entity having the option of registering a .us domain.
History
The original administrator of .us was Jon PostelJon Postel
Jonathan Bruce Postel was an American computer scientist who made many significant contributions to the development of the Internet, particularly with respect to standards...
of the Information Sciences Institute
Information Sciences Institute
The Information Sciences Institute is a research and development unit of the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering which focuses on computer and communications technology and information processing...
(ISI) at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(USC). He administered .us under a subcontract that the ISI and USC had from SRI International
SRI International
SRI International , founded as Stanford Research Institute, is one of the world's largest contract research institutes. Based in Menlo Park, California, the trustees of Stanford University established it in 1946 as a center of innovation to support economic development in the region. It was later...
(which held the .us and the gTLD contract with the United States Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
) and later Network Solutions
Network Solutions
Network Solutions, LLC is a technology company founded in 1979. The domain name registration business has become the most important division of the company. As of January 2009, Network Solutions managed more than 6.6 million domain names.-History:...
(which held the .us and the gTLD contract with the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
). Registrants could only register third-level domains or higher in a geographic and organizational hierarchy. The vast majority of the geographic subdomains in .us were delegated to various private entities and .us registrants could register with the delegated administrator for the level they wished to register in, but not directly with the .us administrator.
In April 2002, second-level domains under .us became available for registration. The .us domain is currently administered by NeuStar Inc. under a United States Department of Commerce
United States Department of Commerce
The United States Department of Commerce is the Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. It was originally created as the United States Department of Commerce and Labor on February 14, 1903...
contract.
Second-level domains for states
Each U.S. stateU.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
, federal territory, and the District of Columbia has a reserved two-letter second-level domain
Second-level domain
In the Domain Name System hierarchy, a second-level domain is a domain that is directly below a top-level domain . For example, in example.com, example is the second-level domain of the .com TLD....
based on the International Organization for Standardization
International Organization for Standardization
The International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO, is an international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on February 23, 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary, industrial and commercial...
Standard ISO 3166-2:US
ISO 3166-2:US
ISO 3166-2:US is the entry for the United States in ISO 3166-2, part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , which defines codes for the names of the principal subdivisions of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1.Currently for the United States, ISO...
for the United States. For example, .ny.us is reserved for websites affiliated with New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and .va.us for those affiliated with Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. However, some state administrations prefer usage of .gov
.gov
The domain name gov is a sponsored top-level domain in the Domain Name System of the Internet. The name is derived from government, indicating its restricted use by government entities in the United States. The gov domain is administered by the General Services Administration , an independent...
domains or others; e.g., California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
’s chief website is located at www.ca.gov instead of www.state.ca.us, and Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
' chief website is located at www.mass.gov instead of www.state.ma.us.
Additionally, the territories of the US have their own ccTLDs: .as
.as
.as is the Internet country code top-level domain for American Samoa. It is administered by AS Domain Registry.There is no restriction on the nationality of registrants, and many .as names are registered to and used by people, companies and organizations with no connection to American Samoa...
for American Samoa
American Samoa
American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa...
, .gu for Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, .mp
.mp
.mp is the Internet country code top-level domain for Northern Mariana Islands. There are a few sites related to the Northern Mariana Islands in this domain . The get.mp site allows users to register and manage .mp domains...
for Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Mariana Islands
The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
, .pr
.pr
-About Nic.pr:"Gauss Research Laboratory Inc" is the managing organization of the Puerto Rico's top level domain under the website. They operate the website , which stands for the Network Information Center of Puerto Rico....
for Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, and .vi
.vi
.vi is the Internet country code top-level domain for the U.S. Virgin Islands.- Second-level domains :Second level domains are allowed, but only for Virgin Island companies. Third level domains are less restricted....
for the United States Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
. These operate alongside or in preference to their .us subdomains (i.e., .as.us, .gu.us, .mp.us, .pr.us, and .vi.us, respectively).
Other administered second-level domains
- .dni.us: distributed national institutes
- .fed.us: federal government agenciesFederal government of the United StatesThe federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
(an alternative to .gov.govThe domain name gov is a sponsored top-level domain in the Domain Name System of the Internet. The name is derived from government, indicating its restricted use by government entities in the United States. The gov domain is administered by the General Services Administration , an independent...
) - .isa.us: interstate agencyInterstate compactAn interstate compact is an agreement between two or more states of the United States of America. Article I, Section 10 of the United States Constitution provides that "no state shall enter into an agreement or compact with another state" without the consent of Congress...
(only used for the Interstate Mining Compact Commission, imcc.isa.us) - .kids.us: content "suitable for children under 13"
- .nsn.us: Native sovereign nations (federally recognized Native AmericanNative Americans in the United StatesNative Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
tribes)
Locality-based namespaces
The general format is "<organization-name>.<locality>.<state>.us", where <state> is a state's two-letter postal abbreviation.Four values of <organization-name> have specific meanings:
- ci: city government agencies (ci.<locality>.<state>.us)
- Examples: http://ci.boston.ma.us/ or http://ci.sacramento.ca.us/
- town: town government agencies (town.<locality>.<state>.us)
- Examples: http://town.sandwich.nh.us/ or http://town.windermere.fl.us/
- vil: village government agencies (vil.<locality>.<state>.us)
- Examples: http://vil.stockbridge.mi.us/ or http://vil.wrightstown.wi.us/
- co: county government agencies (co.<locality>.<state>.us)
- Examples: http://co.adams.id.us/ or http://co.greene.oh.us/
Ordinarily, a <locality> is a city, county, parish, or township.
Some other names may replace the <locality>:
- state: state government agencies (<organization-name>.state.<state>.us)
- Examples: http://www.state.ak.us/ or http://www.state.mn.us/
- dst: government agencies in administrative districts (<organization-name>.dst.<state>.us)
- cog: councils of government (federations of cities or counties) (<organization-name>.cog.<state>.us)
- k12: public elementary and/or secondary unified school districts (<district-name>.k12.<state>.us), or individual schools (<school-name>.k12.<state>.us)
- pvt.k12: private elementary or secondary schools (<school-name>.pvt.k12.<state>.us)
- cc: community colleges (<school-name>.cc.<state>.us)
- tec: technical and vocational schools (<school-name>.tec.<state>.us)
- lib: public libraries (<library-name>.lib.<state>.us)
- mus: museums (<museum-name>.mus.<state>.us)
- gen: general independent entities (clubs or other groups not fitting into the above categories) (<organization-name>.gen.<state>.us)
In some cases,
Paducah Public Schools
Paducah Public Schools is a school district located in Paducah, Kentucky. The district serves most, but not all, of the city of Paducah; significant areas within the city limits lie in the surrounding McCracken County school district....
are at http://paducah.kyschools.us, while the McCracken County Public Schools
McCracken County Public Schools
McCracken County Public Schools is a school district headquartered in Hendron, unincorporated McCracken County Kentucky.The district serves all of McCracken County except for most of the area within the city limits of Paducah, which is served by its own school district...
use mccracken.kyschools.us as a redirect to their actual URL of http://www.mccrackencountyschools.net.
As noted above, registration of a subdomain in this space may depend on the cooperation of a private delegate. Many mainstream registration companies do not offer domains in this space, which may account for the low utilization rate.
Restrictions on use of .us domains
Under .US Nexus Requirements .US domains may be registered only by the following qualified entities:- Any United States citizen or resident,
- Any United States entity, such as organizations or corporations,
- Any foreign entity or organization with a bona fideBona FideBona Fide is a studio album from rock band Wishbone Ash. It is the first studio album in six years and is the only studio album to feature guitarist Ben Granfelt...
presence in the United States
To ensure that these requirements are met, NeuStar
NeuStar
Neustar, Inc. is a provider of clearinghouse and directory services to the global communications and Internet industries.-History:Neustar was incorporated in Delaware in 1998. It started as a business unit within Lockheed Martin Corporation...
frequently conducts "spot checks" on registrant information.
To prevent anonymous registrations that do not meet these requirements, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that serves as the President's principal adviser on telecommunications policies pertaining to the United States' economic and technological advancement and to regulation of the...
has ruled that registrants of .us domains may not secure private domain name registration http://www.americansdeserveprivacy.com/.
Registrants are required to provide complete contact information without omissions. http://www.neustar.us/content/download/2659/32865/ustld_nexus_requirements.pdf
External links
- .us Domain Registry
- IANA .us whois information
- Management of .us Domain Name (U.S. Department of Commerce)
- usTLD Nexus Requirements - Requirements for registrants of .us domains, Portable Document FormatPortable Document FormatPortable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....
- Kids.us Content Policies
- RFC 1480: The US Domain (June 1993)
- locality-based namespaces