Edge hostnames are hostnames specifically designated for use by our edge servers.

Why do I need this?

An edge hostname lets you map requests for your site, app, or content to our edge servers. You can use an edge hostname as a property hostname or origin hostname depending on how you decide to leverage ​Akamai​'s content delivery network (CDN).

How is it different than a regular hostname?

A hostname is the fully qualified domain name (meaning the domain with its sub-domain) that users enter into an address bar. An edge hostname includes an additional domain that designates it as an edge hostname to our servers. For example, if your hostname is www.example.com, an edge hostname would be www.example.com.edgesuite.net.