.va
.va is the ccTLD for Vatican City. It is managed by the Holy See - Vatican City State.[1]
History[edit | edit source]
The .va ccTLD was registered on the IANA database on 11 September, 1995.[1] Archbishop Joseph Patrick Foley of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications was responsible for the registration of the top-level domain suffix of .va for the exclusive use of the Holy See.[2] The Vatican, as a sovereign state, was entitled to the domain name but for Cardinal Foley, most important was the fact that one could be sure anything published under the .va domain was authentic material from the Vatican and the Holy See.[3]
Still in 1995, Sister Judith Zoebelein, a Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist, was asked to create a Web site for the Holy See, which went online on Christmas that year.[2]
Rules and Restrictions[edit | edit source]
The .va domain is strictly regulated and its use is confined to the official organs of the Vatican. This is done to maintain the specific purpose of the domain, aligning it closely with the mission of the Holy See.[4]