Dutch Internet pioneer Jaap Akkerhuis Knighted for Exceptional Contribution to Society
Jaap Akkerhuis was awarded Knight of the Order of the Dutch Lion on April 24, 2026. It is the highest civilian order of chivalry in the Netherlands, conferred on persons who have rendered outstanding service to society.
Jaap Akkerhuis was awarded Knight of the Order of the Dutch Lion on April 24, 2026. It is the highest civilian order of chivalry in the Netherlands, conferred on persons who have rendered outstanding service to society. Akkerhuis is a Dutch Internet pioneer, protocol designer and expert on the internet's naming system. He is a senior research engineer at NLnet Labs, and vice-chair of the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency responsible for the allocation of country codes (think: "NL", “UK”).
Dutch internet pioneer
Staying in the background since the 1980s, Akkerhuis' contributions have been instrumental in the development of the Internet in the Netherlands, and around the world. Jaap worked on the team at CWI that established and operated the first open internet connection between Europe and the US and helped lay the foundation for Amsterdam as a global internet hub.
Applied research and standardisation for the Internet
His applied research while employed at SIDN made it possible to cryptographically sign internet names at scale – a milestone in the security of the global Domain Name System. In the IETF, the international standardisation organisation for the Internet, Jaap co-chaired the standardisation of automation technology for the registration of internet domain names. The resulting standard EPP is in use around the world to this day.
Internet stability and operational coordination
For 23 years, Jaap advised on threats to the stability and security of the Internet as a member of ICANN's Security and Stability Advisory Committee. He co-founded and chaired RIPE's DNS working group, facilitating operational coordination between operators of critical internet infrastructure. In 2017, Jaap was recognized as a ‘global innovator’ and incorporated in the Internet Hall of Fame.
At NLnet Labs, we value Jaap's no-nonsense approach to internet governance and engineering and congratulate him with his well-deserved Knighthood. Though this is Jaap’s turn in the spotlight, he would probably want us to refer to the contributions of many people around him.