xh

xh is the ISO 639-1 two-letter code for the Xhosa language. It is used to tag Xhosa text in software, databases, and bibliographic records, and appears in locale identifiers such as xh-ZA.

Xhosa (isiXhosa) is a Bantu language of the Nguni group spoken mainly in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, and the Northern Cape of South Africa, with speakers also in neighboring countries and diaspora communities. It is one of South Africa's 11 official languages and is widely used in education, media, and government.

Xhosa is written with the Latin alphabet. It features a rich consonant inventory that includes surface clicks, which are represented orthographically by several letters, such as c, q, x, and their combinations with vowels. The language has a noun class system that governs agreement and morphology, a hallmark of Bantu languages.

Beyond linguistic study, the xh code is used in localization and language tagging, enabling Xhosa content to be separated from other languages in digital environments. The code is maintained within the ISO 639-1 standard and is widely recognized in international information systems.