The Ugly American

In selecting domain names, we need to think about the non-English-speaking world as well our own. Why should ".name" be added as a new top-level domain when ".nom" or ".nombre" would be more familiar to French- and Spanish-speaking Internet users?

Perhaps ICANN, or some other body, should designate some "official" Internet languages in which all top-level domains (TLDs) would have equivalents.

I have been following with interest -- albeit from a distance -- the fighting over how new top-level domain names are created and the ones recently chosen by ICANN.

And I noticed something: All the new TLDs are in English. Yes, I know English is the global language of business. And I realize ICANN is a creation of the United States government. But should that give English-speakers such a huge advantage online?

The new domains -- .biz, .pro, .info, .aero, .coop, .museum, and .name -- all seem useful enough, although the same can be said for many of the proposed domains that weren't selected. But in choosing these domains, should ICANN have also selected a set of languages in which the domains would be translated?

Do all these new domain names even have meaning to the non-English speaking majority of the world's residents?

The United Nations, for example, has designated official languages into which its official documents are translated and in which meetings are held.

The International Red Cross movement, of which I am a part, has French and English as its primary languages.

ICANN should designate official languages -- English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Arabic, Japanese, Russian, and Hindi seem like a good start -- and create/administer equivalent TLDs for each.

There might also be a provision for smaller language groups -- Swedish or Serbian, for example -- to create their own language-specific TLDs.

I think it's wonderful the United States has such influence over all things Internet. One of our key advantages as a nation is our export of language, culture, and technology. Still, the Internet needs to be useful to everyone. And doing that means giving people the Internet in their own language.

ZDNet News commentator David Coursey is based in Silicon Valley and has covered personal computers, software, and the Internet for more than 20 years. He is an industry analyst and creator of several industry conference events. His Web site is www.coursey.com.