Zooko's Triangle
Updated 2026-08-02
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
Proposed by Zooko Wilcox-O'Hearn, the triangle states that a naming system can satisfy at most two of three desirable properties: human-meaningful names that people can remember, decentralization without a central authority, and security that binds a name to a specific key. The domain name system achieves meaningful and secure names by relying on centralized registrars; public key fingerprints are secure and decentralized but unreadable; pet names are readable and decentralized but not globally secure. Key qualification: the triangle is a practical trade-off rather than a proven theorem, and hybrid systems attempt to soften it.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Declare priorities: decide which two properties your naming or identity system must have. - Anticipate the cost: accept the unreadable names, central authority, or impersonation risk you are choosing. - Add a resolution layer: use directories or verification steps to recover the property you gave up.
Anchor fast decisions
A globally meaningful name must mean the same thing to everyone, which requires a shared authority or a costly consensus process to prevent conflicts. Without that authority two parties can claim the same name, so security requires a name derived from the key itself, and such names are not memorable. The three properties pull against one another through the same underlying requirement for global agreement.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zooko's_triangleverified
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