In most texts, it is acceptable to use the short form of a country name (see table below).
Examples of long and short forms of country names
| Long form |
Short form |
Abbreviationa |
|
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
|
North Korea
|
PRK
|
|
Federal Republic of Germany (the)
|
Germany
|
DEU
|
|
Independent State of Papua New Guinea
|
Papua New Guinea
|
PNG
|
|
Lao People’s Democratic Republic (the)
|
Laos
|
LAO
|
|
Republic of Korea
|
South Korea
|
KOR
|
|
Syrian Arab Republic (the)
|
Syria
|
SYR
|
|
Republic of the Union of Myanmarb
|
Myanmar |
MMR
|
|
the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (UN)
|
Myanmar
|
MMT
|
|
United Republic of Tanzania (the)
|
Tanzania
|
TZA
|
|
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the)
|
United Kingdom
|
GBRc
|
|
United States of America
|
United States
|
USAd
|
a Several different listings of abbreviations exist, including the 3-letter codes of the United Nations (used here); 2-letter codes suggested by the International Organization for Standardization, which are based on the United Nations list; and 3-letter codes used by the International Olympic Committee.
b The Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has previously used the name Burma in some contexts; however, Myanamar is now (2020) used.
c Commonly abbreviated as UK
d Commonly abbreviated as US
Caution! Note that the UNGEGN lists Viet Nam, while both the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the CIA factbook list Vietnam.
