ISO/IEC 5218 ''Information technology — Codes for the representation of human sexes'' is an
international standard that defines a representation of human sexes through a language-neutral single-digit code. It can be used in information systems such as
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases s ...
applications.
The four codes specified in ISO/IEC 5218 are:
* 0 = Not known;
* 1 = Male;
* 2 = Female;
* 9 = Not applicable.
The standard specifies that its use may be referred to by the designator "SEX".
The standard explicitly states that no significance is to be placed on the encoding of ''male'' as 1 and
''female'' as 2; the encoding merely reflects existing practice in the countries that initiated this standard. The standard also explains that it "meets the requirements of most applications that need to code human sexes. It does not provide codes for sexes that may be required in specific medical and scientific applications or in applications that need to code sex information other than for human beings."
ISO/IEC 5218 was created by
ISO
ISO is the most common abbreviation for the International Organization for Standardization.
ISO or Iso may also refer to: Business and finance
* Iso (supermarket), a chain of Danish supermarkets incorporated into the SuperBest chain in 2007
* Iso ...
's ''Data Management and Interchange'' Technical Committee, proposed in November 1976, and updated in July 2004. The standard is currently maintained by
the ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee (
ISO/IEC JTC 1) subcommittee on Data management and interchange (ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32).
ISO/IEC Committee JTC 1/SC 32
''Data management and interchange (ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32)''
This standard is used in several national identification number
A national identification number, national identity number, or national insurance number or JMBG/EMBG is used by the governments of many countries as a means of tracking their citizens, permanent residents, and temporary residents for the purp ...
s. For example, the first digit of the French INSEE number and the first digit of the Republic of China National Identification Card
The Republic of China national identification card (), commonly known as the national identification card of Taiwan, is a compulsory identity document issued to people who hold both nationality and household registration in Taiwan. The Nation ...
(Chinese: 中華民國國民身分證) are based on ISO/IEC 5218 values.
References
2004 introductions
#05218
Gender
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