HTML is the simple and powerful language used to describe /written web pages. Do you want to learn what is HTML and what are the actual use of HTML then you are in right place.
HTML is the foundation of all web pages, without HTML we cannot think about the content of any website.
Hypertext markup language is a markup language that web browsers use to interpret and compose text, images and other material into visual or audible web pages.
If you interested in blogging, web designing, digital marketing or any kind of Internet activities than knowledge of HTML is very essential for you. Having sound knowledge of HTML, somehow help you everywhere.
This HTML tutorial is developed for everyone beginner and professionals. We will discuss every topic in detailed step-by-step so that anyone can learn and earn deep knowledge of HTML from here in a very easy way. Also if you want to design a stunning own website, you’ll love this tutorial.
If you don’t have any idea about what is HTML.
Don’t worry.
Please read this article thoroughly, you will obviously get a good knowledge about Hyper Text Markup Language.
I am splitting this article in different sections for better understanding.
Table of contents is also given below, from where you can jump directly to any section as per your choice but I am suggesting to you please read this article thoroughly from start to end.
What is HTML ?
HTML stands for Hyper Text Markup Language which is widely used for creating web pages. HTML is not a programming language but it is a markup language.
It is the language of Internet, using this language we can create a web site.
HTML is written in the form of HTML elements consisting of tags, enclosed in angle brackets (i.e. < html >) within the content of web page. The contents of each web page are defined by HTML tags.
HTML is made with combination of two things, i.e. Hyper Text (HT) + Markup Language (ML).
What is Hyper Text ?
Hypertext refers to the hyperlinks that an HTML page may contain. Hypertext is text which contains links to other texts of web page. So we can simply say that “a text has a link within it, is a hypertext”. Whenever anyone click on that link it will re-direct to a new text or webpage, because that person have clicked on a hypertext. The Ted Nelson originally invented the word “hypertext” for “non-sequential writing” around 1965.
What is Markup Language?
A markup language is a computer language that uses a set of markup tags to define elements within a document and it has no compiler or interpreter. Markup language is human-readable, markup file contain standard words, rather than typical programming syntax (which is written in computer coding/ programming languages).
History of HTML ?
HTML was created by Sir Timothy John Berners Lee.
Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee is an English Engineer and computer scientist had developed his first hypertext system, “Enquire” in 1980 for his personal use.
In 1989, Tim came up with the concept, we could actually link the text in the files themselves. It means, while reading one research paper we could quickly display part of another paper that holds relevant text. This could be done using form of hypertext, linking documents together by using buttons, when we clicked on the buttons jump from one paper to another.
In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee wrote a memo proposing an internet based hypertext system in collaboration with CERN Data Systems Engineer “Robert Caillau” while they worked at CERN. In the last part of 1990, Berners-Lee specified HTML and wrote the browser and server software. HTML is a subset of standard generalized markup language (SGML).
- HTML 0.0 first version was released in 1990.
- HTML 1.0 was released in 1993 with intention to sharing information which can be readable and accessible via web browsers.
- HTML 2.0 published in 1995, which remained as the standard markup language for designing and creating websites until January 1997.
- HTML 3.0 published in January 1997, which includes additional features: forms, style sheets, mathematical markup and text flow around figures.
- HTML 4.0 was published in December 1997, it offers three variations (i) Strict (ii) Transitional (iii) Frameset.
- HTML 5.0 was published in the year 2012, which is currently used worldwide.
Structure of HTML document

An HTML element is defined by a start tag, then usually writes some content and finally use end tag. The HTML element is everything from the start tag to the end tag.
What is HTML Tags ?
HTML has a collection of certain key words called “Tags” that are helpful in writing the documents to be displayed using a browser or Internet.
To display a document in web it is essential to markup the different elements of the documents like headings, paragraphs, tables etc with the help of HTML tags.
HTML Tags are written within the less than signs (<) and greater than signs (>). These signs also known as angle brackets.
What are the different Tags in HTML?
HTML has a number of Tags. The essential tags that are required to create a HTML documents are:
<html> ……………. </html>
<head> ……………. </head>
<body> ……………. </body>
HTML tags divided into different sections and types based on their uses. These are comments tags, heading tags, formatting tags, image tags, link tags, list tags, marquee tags, meta tags:
List of HTML Tags with description
Tag | Description |
<!— …. —> | This tag is used to describe the comment text in code |
<!DOCTYPE> | This tag is used to define a document type |
<a> | This is called an anchor tag, use for link the Internal / external documents to any web page/ post. |
<abbr> | Describes an abbreviation |
<address> | Describes an address information |
<area> | Defines an area in an image map |
<article> | Define an article |
<aside> | Use to describes contain set on aside place in page contain |
<audio> | Use to specify audio content |
<b> | Used to display the text in bold face. |
<base> | Define a base URL for all the links within a web page |
<bdo> | Specific direction of text display |
<blockquote> | Used to enclose multi-line quotation from other sources. |
<body> | Defines a main section(body) part in HTML document |
<br/> | Specific a single line break |
<button> | Specifies a press/push button |
<canvas> | Specifies the display graphics on web document. |
<caption> | Define a table caption |
<cite> | Specifies a text citation |
<code> | Specifies computer code text |
<col> | Specifies a each column within a <colgroup> element in table |
<colgroup> | Defines a group of one or more columns inside table |
<command> | Define a command button, invoke as per user action |
<datalist> | Define a list of pre-defined options surrounding <input> tag |
<dd> | Defines a definition description in a definition list |
<del> | Used to show text has been deleted from a web document |
<details> | Define a additional details hide or show as per user action |
<dfn> | Define a definition team |
<div> | Define a division part |
<dl> | Define a definition list |
<dt> | Define a definition team |
<em> | Define a text is emphasized text. |
<embed> | Define a embedding external application using a relative plug-in |
<fieldset> | Defines a grouping of related form elements |
<figcaption> | Represents a caption text corresponding with a figure element |
<figure> | Represents self-contained content corresponding with a <figcaption> element |
<footer> | Use to define a footer section for a document or website |
<form> | Defines a form section that having interactive input controls to submit form information to a server. |
<h1> to <h6> | Use to define headings for a document |
<head> | Use to define header section for HTML document |
<header> | Defines as a container that hold introductory content or navigation links. |
<hr/> | Represent a thematic break between paragraph-level tags. It is typically draw horizontal line. |
<html> | Define a document is a HTML markup language |
<i> | Used to display a part of text in italic form. |
<iframe> | Defines a inline frame that embedded external content into current web document. |
<img> | Used to insert image into a web document. |
<input> | Define a get information in selected input |
<ins> | Used to show text inserted during a revision of a page and indicates changes to a document. |
<kbd> | Used for marking up text that is meant to be entered by the reader through the keyboard. |
<label> | Used to caption a text label with a form <input> element. |
<legend> | Used to add a caption (title) to a group of related form elements that are grouped together into the <fieldset> tag. |
<li> | Define a list item either ordered list or unordered list. |
<link> | Used to load an external stylesheets into HTML document. |
<map> | Defines an clickable image map. |
<mark> | Used to highlighted (marked) specific text. |
<menu> | Used to display a unordered list of items/menu of commands. |
<meta> | Used to provide structured metadata about a web page. |
<meter> | Used to measure data within a given range. |
<nav> | Used to defines group of navigation links. |
<noscript> | Used to provide an fall-back content to the browser that does not support the JavaScript. |
<object> | Used to embedded objects such as images, audio, videos, Java applets, and Flash animations. |
<ol> | Defines an ordered list of items. |
<optgroup> | Used to create a grouping of options, the related options are grouped under specific headings. |
<option> | Represents option items within a <select>, <optgroup> or <datalist> element. |
<output> | Used for representing the result of a calculation. |
<p> | Used to represents a paragraph text. |
<param> | Provides parameters for embedded object element. |
<pre> | Used to define preformatted text. |
<progress> | Represents the progress of a task. |
<q> | Used to define a short quotation marks on both sides of contained text. |
<rp> | Used to provide parentheses around fall-back content to the browser that does not support the ruby annotations. |
<rt> | Specifies the ruby text of ruby annotation. |
<ruby> | Used to represents a ruby annotation. |
<s> | Text display in strikethrough style. |
<samp> | Represents text that should be interpreted as sample output from a computer program. |
<script> | Defines client-side JavaScript. |
<section> | Used to divide a document into number of different generic section. |
<select> | Used to create a drop-down list. |
<small> | Used to makes the text one size smaller. |
<source> | Used to specifies multiple media resources. |
<span> | Used to grouping and applying styles to inline elements. |
<strong> | Used to create strong emphasis greater important text. |
<style> | Used to add CSS style to an HTML document. |
<sub> | Represents inline subscript text. |
<sup> | Represents inline superscript text. |
<table> | Used to defines a table in an HTML document. |
<tbody> | Used for grouping table rows. |
<td> | Used for creates standard data cell in HTML table. |
<txtarea> | Create multi-line text input. |
<tfoot> | Used to adding a footer to a table that containing summary of the table data. |
<th> | Used for creates header of a group of cell in HTML table. |
<thead> | Used to adding a header to a table that containing header information of the table. |
<time> | Represents the date and/or time in an HTML document. |
<title> | Represents title to an HTML document. |
<tr> | Defines a row of cells in a table. |
<track> | Represents text tracks for both the <audio> and <video> tags. |
<u> | Represents underlined text. |
<ul> | Defines an unordered list of items. |
<var> | Used to mark up a variable’s name in computer programming. |
<video> | Used to embed video content. |
<wbr> | Defines a word break opportunity in a long string of text. |
What is HTML Attributes ?
Attributes are special words used inside the opening tag which provide additional information about the elements or attributes. Attributes are a modifier of an HTML element.
HTML attributes are made up of two parts – first part is a name and second part is a value. The ‘name’ is the property you want to set. The ‘value’ is what you want the value of the property to be set, which is always put within the quotations mark.
What are the different Attributes in HTML?
There are several types of attributes in HTML. These are required attributes, optional attributes, standard attributes and event attributes.
Required attributes
Optional attributes
Standard attributes
Event attributes
There are number of resources are available on the internet, from where you can learn more about HTML Tags and Attributes.
I hope this article helped you to get a clear idea about what is HTML and what are the actual use of it.
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