In this snippet, we provide a convenient PHP array containing the ISO 3166 country names.
PHP
$countries = array(
"Afghanistan",
"Aland Islands",
"Albania",
"Algeria",
"American Samoa",
"Andorra",
"Angola",
"Anguilla",
"Antarctica",
"Antigua",
"Argentina",
"Armenia",
"Aruba",
"Australia",
"Austria",
"Azerbaijan",
"Bahamas",
"Bahrain",
"Bangladesh",
"Barbados",
"Barbuda",
"Belarus",
"Belgium",
"Belize",
"Benin",
"Bermuda",
"Bhutan",
"Bolivia",
"Bosnia",
"Botswana",
"Bouvet Island",
"Brazil",
"British Indian Ocean Trty.",
"Brunei Darussalam",
"Bulgaria",
"Burkina Faso",
"Burundi",
"Caicos Islands",
"Cambodia",
"Cameroon",
"Canada",
"Cape Verde",
"Cayman Islands",
"Central African Republic",
"Chad",
"Chile",
"China",
"Christmas Island",
"Cocos (Keeling) Islands",
"Colombia",
"Comoros",
"Congo",
"Congo, Democratic Republic of the",
"Cook Islands",
"Costa Rica",
"Cote d'Ivoire",
"Croatia",
"Cuba",
"Cyprus",
"Czech Republic",
"Denmark",
"Djibouti",
"Dominica",
"Dominican Republic",
"Ecuador",
"Egypt",
"El Salvador",
"Equatorial Guinea",
"Eritrea",
"Estonia",
"Ethiopia",
"Falkland Islands (Malvinas)",
"Faroe Islands",
"Fiji",
"Finland",
"France",
"French Guiana",
"French Polynesia",
"French Southern Territories",
"Futuna Islands",
"Gabon",
"Gambia",
"Georgia",
"Germany",
"Ghana",
"Gibraltar",
"Greece",
"Greenland",
"Grenada",
"Guadeloupe",
"Guam",
"Guatemala",
"Guernsey",
"Guinea",
"Guinea-Bissau",
"Guyana",
"Haiti",
"Heard",
"Herzegovina",
"Holy See",
"Honduras",
"Hong Kong",
"Hungary",
"Iceland",
"India",
"Indonesia",
"Iran (Islamic Republic of)",
"Iraq",
"Ireland",
"Isle of Man",
"Israel",
"Italy",
"Jamaica",
"Jan Mayen Islands",
"Japan",
"Jersey",
"Jordan",
"Kazakhstan",
"Kenya",
"Kiribati",
"Korea",
"Korea (Democratic)",
"Kuwait",
"Kyrgyzstan",
"Lao",
"Latvia",
"Lebanon",
"Lesotho",
"Liberia",
"Libyan Arab Jamahiriya",
"Liechtenstein",
"Lithuania",
"Luxembourg",
"Macao",
"Macedonia",
"Madagascar",
"Malawi",
"Malaysia",
"Maldives",
"Mali",
"Malta",
"Marshall Islands",
"Martinique",
"Mauritania",
"Mauritius",
"Mayotte",
"McDonald Islands",
"Mexico",
"Micronesia",
"Miquelon",
"Moldova",
"Monaco",
"Mongolia",
"Montenegro",
"Montserrat",
"Morocco",
"Mozambique",
"Myanmar",
"Namibia",
"Nauru",
"Nepal",
"Netherlands",
"Netherlands Antilles",
"Nevis",
"New Caledonia",
"New Zealand",
"Nicaragua",
"Niger",
"Nigeria",
"Niue",
"Norfolk Island",
"Northern Mariana Islands",
"Norway",
"Oman",
"Pakistan",
"Palau",
"Palestinian Territory, Occupied",
"Panama",
"Papua New Guinea",
"Paraguay",
"Peru",
"Philippines",
"Pitcairn",
"Poland",
"Portugal",
"Principe",
"Puerto Rico",
"Qatar",
"Reunion",
"Romania",
"Russian Federation",
"Rwanda",
"Saint Barthelemy",
"Saint Helena",
"Saint Kitts",
"Saint Lucia",
"Saint Martin (French part)",
"Saint Pierre",
"Saint Vincent",
"Samoa",
"San Marino",
"Sao Tome",
"Saudi Arabia",
"Senegal",
"Serbia",
"Seychelles",
"Sierra Leone",
"Singapore",
"Slovakia",
"Slovenia",
"Solomon Islands",
"Somalia",
"South Africa",
"South Georgia",
"South Sandwich Islands",
"Spain",
"Sri Lanka",
"Sudan",
"Suriname",
"Svalbard",
"Swaziland",
"Sweden",
"Switzerland",
"Syrian Arab Republic",
"Taiwan",
"Tajikistan",
"Tanzania",
"Thailand",
"The Grenadines",
"Timor-Leste",
"Tobago",
"Togo",
"Tokelau",
"Tonga",
"Trinidad",
"Tunisia",
"Turkey",
"Turkmenistan",
"Turks Islands",
"Tuvalu",
"Uganda",
"Ukraine",
"United Arab Emirates",
"United Kingdom",
"United States",
"Uruguay",
"US Minor Outlying Islands",
"Uzbekistan",
"Vanuatu",
"Vatican City State",
"Venezuela",
"Vietnam",
"Virgin Islands (British)",
"Virgin Islands (US)",
"Wallis",
"Western Sahara",
"Yemen",
"Zambia",
"Zimbabwe"
);Usage
Dropdown Menus in Web Forms
When creating web forms that require users to select their country, this array becomes a valuable resource. You can dynamically generate a dropdown menu with the country names, and the corresponding ISO 3166 codes can be used behind the scenes for data processing.
PHP
<select name="country">
<?php
foreach ($countries as $country) {
echo "<option value=\"$country\">$country</option>";
}
?>
</select>Data Validation and Standardisation
In applications where user input or external data needs validation or standardization, this array can be used to ensure that country names are accurate and consistent. It helps prevent errors and improves the overall quality of your data.
PHP
$userInput = "United States";
if (in_array($userInput, $countries)) {
// Valid country name
// Perform further processing
} else {
// Invalid country name
// Handle error or prompt user for correction
}FAQ
ISO 3166: What is it?
The ISO 3166 standard is maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and defines codes for the names of countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest. These codes are used in various applications, such as domain names, vehicle registration plates, and international shipping labels.