hreflang="xh" — Correct Usage
Copy-paste correct usage for Xhosa — HTML, sitemap syntax and the mistakes to avoid.
hreflang="xh" labels a URL as the Xhosa version of a page. Add it as a link tag (or sitemap entry) on every alternate version, always reciprocally and always alongside an x-default entry.
HTML head implementation
<link rel="alternate" hreflang="xh" href="https://example.com/xh/" /> <link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/" />
XML sitemap implementation
<url> <loc>https://example.com/xh/</loc> <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="xh" href="https://example.com/xh/" /> <xhtml:link rel="alternate" hreflang="x-default" href="https://example.com/" /> </url>
Rules that trip people up
- Reciprocity: every alternate must link back to every other one, including itself.
- Valid syntax: ISO 639-1 language, optionally “-” + ISO 3166-1 country (or UN M49 region like 419).
- Point only at canonical, indexable, 200-status URLs — never at redirects.
- hreflang suggests, canonical decides: conflicting canonicals silently break clusters.
Frequently asked questions
What does hreflang="xh" mean?
It tells search engines the linked URL is the Xhosa version of the page. Users searching in that locale get this URL in results instead of another language version.
Where do I put hreflang="xh"?
In one of three places (pick one, consistently): link tags in the HTML head, HTTP headers, or your XML sitemap. Every language version must list all alternates including itself — missing return links invalidate the cluster.
What are the most common hreflang mistakes?
Non-reciprocal links (A lists B, B forgets A), invalid codes (using country codes alone, or “en-EU”), pointing alternates at redirected/noindexed URLs, and forgetting the self-reference. Audit clusters with a crawler after any URL change.
Keep exploring
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