Country codes are short, standardized abbreviations used to represent countries and their subdivisions. These codes can be found in various formats, such as the two-letter codes defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 3166-1 alpha-2) and the three-letter codes (ISO 3166-1 alpha-3). They are commonly used in international shipping, travel, and telecommunications to simplify communication and avoid confusion. In addition to ISO codes, there are also numeric country codes assigned by the United Nations and used in various databases. These codes help in identifying countries in a more universal manner, especially in statistical and demographic data. Overall, country codes play a crucial role in global communication and data management.