Definition
Sharding is a blockchain scalability concept in which the global state and transaction processing responsibilities are partitioned into multiple, distinct subsets called shards. Each shard maintains its own state and processes a subset of transactions, while remaining logically part of a single network. Sharding aims to distribute validation and data responsibilities across different participants, reducing per-participant load while preserving a unified protocol-level state space.
In Simple Terms
Sharding is a way of splitting a blockchain’s data and transaction processing into smaller pieces, called shards. Each shard handles only part of the overall activity, but all shards together still form one overall blockchain network and state.
Context and Usage
Sharding is typically discussed in the context of scaling public blockchains that must handle high transaction throughput and large state sizes. It appears in protocol research, data availability discussions, and network architecture design debates. The term is used when describing how responsibilities are distributed across validators, how state is organized, and how a blockchain’s base layer might be structured to support higher capacity without changing its fundamental trust assumptions.