Final answer:
Domain names must have at least two parts: the top-level domain and the second-level domain. There is no strict rule on the maximum number of parts, and a domain can contain multiple subdomains. The Domain Name System (DNS) defines the structure of domain names.
Step-by-step explanation:
Domain names must follow particular standards. A common misconception is that domain names have a fixed number of parts; however, there is no set number of parts that a domain name must have. It is possible for a domain to have as few as two parts, such as 'example.com', or to have several subdomains, such as 'sub.sub.example.com', thereby having more than two or three parts. Each part of a domain name is separated by a dot (period).
The structure of domain names is defined by the rules of the Domain Name System (DNS), which is a hierarchical naming system for computers, services, or any resource connected to the Internet or a private network. Essentially, domain names serve as human-readable addresses for IP addresses.
To answer the question: domain names must always have at least two parts - the top-level domain (TLD), like '.com', '.org', etc., and the second-level domain, which is the name chosen by the individual or organization, like 'example' in 'example.com'.