Localisation

This landing page links to core technical documentation about MediaWiki internationalisation and localisation (i18n and L10n). A core principle of MediaWiki is that i18n must not be an afterthought: i18n and l10n are an essential component even in the earliest phases of software development.

For translators and users

• Translator hub
• For translating pages on this wiki, see Project:Language policy .
• How to translate MediaWiki interface messages
• Language names reference
• How to input text in different scripts (IMEs)
• How to download and enable different webfonts
• Universal Language Selector FAQ

For developers

Write code that can be localised

• Overview of language in MediaWiki
• i18n features:
  • Namespaces
  • Time and date formats
  • Fallbacks
  • Directionality support
• How to write system messages
• How to write good i18n code
• Adding and removing languages

Get your code translated

• Use translatewiki.net
• What can be localised
• How to find a MediaWiki string for translation
• translatewiki.net FAQ for MediaWiki
• To localise external tools, like those in Toolforge, use the Banana library.
• Localise an extension

Implement a multilingual wiki

• MediaWiki Language Extension Bundle
• Writing systems support
• Content translation (CX) extension
• Customise messages in your local wiki
• Multilingual Semantic MediaWiki

Add a wiki in a new language

• Language proposal policy
• Requests for new languages
• Wikimedia Incubator Help Manual

Help and contact info

• mediawiki-i18n mailing list
• translatewiki.net Support page
• IRC: #translatewiki ^connect
• Telegram channel: translatewiki.net.
• File a bug:
  • MediaWiki bug reports for internationalisation
  • Tips for filing a bug
• Language Engineering team

See also

• Resources
  • API:Localisation
  • Language tools - The work of the Wikimedia Foundation's i18n/l10n team
  • How to internationalise your code presentation - PDF slides about i18n, l10n and m17n in general and about doing it in MediaWiki in particular. (2012)
• Statistics and issues
  • Localisation statistics
  • Localisation checks
  • MediaWiki bug reports for Internationalisation
• Other
  • Manual:Wiki family - installation and configuration of a small wiki-family (for administrators)
  • Template:Languages
  • Debian's Introduction to i18n
  • Unicode Technical Reports (also specifications by topic)