---
id: html-introduction
title: "HTML Introduction"
category: "Frontend"
status: "draft"
verification_status: "conceptual"
canonical_id: ""
aliases: ["HTML", "HyperText Markup Language", "HTML5", "markup language", "HTML intro"]
duplicate_of: ""
source_trust_level: "B"
confidence_score: 0.90
created_at: 2026-06-23
updated_at: 2026-06-23
review_reason: ""
merge_history: []
tags: ["html", "web", "frontend", "markup", "w3schools"]
raw_sources: ["https://www.w3schools.com/html/html_intro.asp"]
applied_in: []
github_commit: ""
---
# [[HTML Introduction]]
## π― ν μ€ ν΅μ°° (One-line insight)
HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the standard markup language that describes the *structure* of a web page through a series of elements that tell the browser how to display content. [S1]
## π§ ν΅μ¬ κ°λ
(Core concepts)
- **HTML = HyperText Markup Language** β the standard markup language for creating web pages. It describes the *structure* of a page, not its logic or styling. [S1]
- **Elements** β HTML is a series of elements that label pieces of content (headings, paragraphs, links, β¦) so the browser knows how to render them. [S1]
- **The browser's role** β a web browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari) reads HTML and displays it. The browser does **not** show the tags themselves; it uses them to decide how to render the document. [S1]
- **Document skeleton** β every HTML5 document opens with `` and nests content inside `` β `` (meta info) and `` (visible content). [S1]
- **HTML5** β the current standard this tutorial follows. [S1]
## 𧩠μΆμΆλ ν¨ν΄ (Extracted patterns)
- **Element pattern** β `content`: a start tag, content, and an end tag (e.g. `My First Heading
`). [S1]
- **Empty elements** β some elements have no content and no end tag (e.g. `
`). [S1]
- **Nesting / containment** β `` holds metadata (like ``); `<body>` holds everything visible; `<html>` is the single root that wraps both. [S1]
- **Title surfacing** β `<title>` content appears in the browser's title bar / tab, not in the page body. [S1]
## π μΈλΆ λ΄μ© (Details)
**What is HTML?**
HTML stands for **Hyper Text Markup Language** and is the standard markup language for creating web pages. It describes the structure of a web page using a series of elements, which tell the browser how to display the content. Elements label pieces of content such as "this is a heading", "this is a paragraph", "this is a link", and so on. [S1]
**A simple HTML document**
```html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Page Title
My First Heading
My first paragraph.
```
Each part explained: [S1]
| Part | Meaning |
|---|---|
| `` | Declares that this document is an HTML5 document |
| `` | The root element of an HTML page |
| `` | Contains meta information about the page |
| `` | Specifies a title shown in the browser's title bar / tab |
| `<body>` | The document body β container for all visible content |
| `<h1>` | Defines a large heading |
| `<p>` | Defines a paragraph |
**What is an HTML element?**
An HTML element is defined by a start tag, some content, and an end tag: `<tagname>Content goes here...</tagname>`. Examples: `<h1>My First Heading</h1>`, `<p>My first paragraph.</p>`. Some elements are *empty* (like `<br>`) β they have no content and no end tag. [S1]
**Web browsers**
The purpose of a web browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari) is to read HTML documents and display them correctly. A browser does not display the HTML tags but uses them to determine how to render the document. [S1]
**HTML page structure**
A visualization of an HTML page's nesting:
```html
<html>
<head>
<title>Page title
This is a heading
This is a paragraph.
This is another paragraph.
```
Content inside `` is displayed by the browser; content inside `` appears in the title bar / tab. [S1]
**HTML history**
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1989 | Tim Berners-Lee invented the WWW |
| 1991 | Tim Berners-Lee invented HTML |
| 1993 | Dave Raggett drafted HTML+ |
| 1995 | HTML Working Group defined HTML 2.0 |
| 1997 | W3C Recommendation: HTML 3.2 |
| 1999 | W3C Recommendation: HTML 4.01 |
| 2000 | W3C Recommendation: XHTML 1.0 |
| 2008 | WHATWG HTML5 First Public Draft |
| 2012 | WHATWG HTML5 Living Standard |
| 2014 | W3C Recommendation: HTML5 |
| 2016 | W3C Candidate Recommendation: HTML 5.1 |
| 2017 | W3C Recommendations: HTML5.1 2nd Edition & HTML5.2 |
This tutorial follows the latest HTML5 standard. [S1]
## π οΈ μ μ© μ¬λ‘ (Applied in summary)
The "simple HTML document" above is itself the canonical minimal applied example: a complete, valid HTML5 page. No external project/commit applications found in the source.
## π» μ½λ ν¨ν΄ (Code patterns)
Minimal valid HTML5 page (HTML / HTML5):
```html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Page Title
My First Heading
My first paragraph.
```
Single element pattern:
```html
My First Heading
```
Empty element (no end tag):
```html
```
## βοΈ λͺ¨μ λ° μ
λ°μ΄νΈ (Contradictions & updates)
No contradictions found in the source. Note the historical shift of HTML stewardship: HTML5 began as a WHATWG draft (2008) and "Living Standard" (2012) before the W3C Recommendation (2014) β reflecting that modern HTML is maintained as a continuously updated living standard rather than fixed versioned releases. [S1]
## β
κ²μ¦ μν λ° μ λ’°λ
- **μν:** draft
- **κ²μ¦ λ¨κ³:** conceptual (μ€μ μ μ© μ¬λ‘ λ°κ²¬ μ applied/validatedλ‘ μΉκ²© κ°λ₯)
- **μΆμ² μ λ’°λ:** B (W3Schools β widely used educational reference, not a primary standards body)
- **μ λ’° μ μ:** 0.90
- **μ€λ³΅ κ²μ¬ κ²°κ³Ό:** μ κ· μμ± (New discovery)
## π μ§μ κ·Έλν (Knowledge Graph)
- **μμ/루νΈ:** [[HTML Tutorial]]
- **κ΄λ ¨ κ°λ
:** [[HTML Elements]], [[HTML Basic]], [[HTML Attributes]], [[HTML vs XHTML]]
- **μ°Έμ‘° λ§₯λ½:** The entry point referenced whenever building or explaining the structure of any web page.
## π μΆμ² (Sources)
- [S1] W3Schools β HTML Introduction β https://www.w3schools.com/html/html_intro.asp
## π λ³κ²½ μ΄λ ₯ (Change history)
- 2026-06-23: Initial draft synthesized from the W3Schools "HTML Introduction" page (Astra wiki-curation, P-Reinforce v3.1 format).