In 2012, companies applied for TLDs in eight scripts. In 2026, only in Chinese characters.
114 applications in non-Latin scripts in 2012; 20 in 2026, every one in Chinese characters. The 90 non-Latin gTLDs that launched from 2012 hold 351,747 names between them, fewer than Russia’s .рф alone.
A snapshot of 31 October 2026. ICANN publishes the final list of 2026 applications on 17 November. Follow the 2026 round →
Eight scripts in 2012, one in 2026
Bangla is open in ICANN’s 2026 round and no one applied in it. It isn’t alone. Of the eight scripts companies applied in in 2012, only one came back.
- 2012 round
- 2026 round
Arabic had 15 applications in 2012, Japanese 9, Cyrillic 8. In 2026 none had any. Of the 20 Chinese applications, 6 come from registries that already run the TLD and want its traditional-Chinese form. The other 14 seek 11 new strings, because 官网 and 品牌 drew more than one applicant.
Outside Chinese, the 2012 ones hold a few dozen names each
Outside Chinese, the typical non-Latin gTLD from 2012 holds 66 names, and 26 of 38 hold under a thousand. A few Chinese ones did better: 网址 (“web address”) holds 84,450 and 在线 (“online”) holds 46,950.
Brands, “artificial intelligence” and “official site”: what the Chinese applicants want
- Brands: 抖音 (Douyin) and two other ByteDance apps, 番茄 (Fanqie, a novels app) and 红果 (Hongguo, a short-drama app); 瑞幸 (Luckin Coffee); 海信 (Hisense); 海尔 (Haier).
- Words: 人工智能 (artificial intelligence), 地址 (address), 官网 (official site), sought by three applicants, and 品牌 (brand), sought by two.
One string is Japanese written in kanji: 株式会社, “joint-stock company”.
Most non-Latin names sit in country codes
.рф holds 802,020 of Cyrillic’s 866,517. Arabic has 32 TLDs and 6,234 names between them, fewer than Greek’s 2. Bangladesh’s .বাংলা holds 409 of Bangla’s 503.
What it means for a non-Latin applicant
Planning a TLD in your own script for the next round? Outside Chinese, the typical one from 2012 holds 66 names, and most names in non-Latin scripts sit in country codes. Before you size the plan, check what your script’s country code holds.
Source: ICANN, registries and Namedesk estimates. 2012 and 2026 application lists; ICANN monthly registry reports, May 2026.