@wordpress/i18n

What is @wordpress/i18n?

@wordpress/i18n is a package designed to provide internationalization (i18n) support for WordPress projects. It allows developers to easily translate strings and manage localization in their WordPress plugins and themes.

What are @wordpress/i18n's main functionalities?

Translating Strings

The `__` function is used to translate a string. The first argument is the string to be translated, and the second argument is the text domain.

const { __ } = require('@wordpress/i18n');
const translatedString = __('Hello, world!', 'text-domain');
console.log(translatedString);

Translating with Context

The `_x` function is used to translate a string with context. The first argument is the string to be translated, the second argument is the context, and the third argument is the text domain.

const { _x } = require('@wordpress/i18n');
const translatedString = _x('Post', 'noun', 'text-domain');
console.log(translatedString);

Plural Translations

The `_n` function is used for plural translations. The first argument is the singular form, the second argument is the plural form, the third argument is the number, and the fourth argument is the text domain.

const { _n } = require('@wordpress/i18n');
const translatedString = _n('%d post', '%d posts', 2, 'text-domain');
console.log(translatedString);

Translating with Context and Plural

The `_nx` function is used for plural translations with context. The first argument is the singular form, the second argument is the plural form, the third argument is the number, the fourth argument is the context, and the fifth argument is the text domain.

const { _nx } = require('@wordpress/i18n');
const translatedString = _nx('%d comment', '%d comments', 2, 'noun', 'text-domain');
console.log(translatedString);

Other packages similar to @wordpress/i18n

i18next

i18next is a popular internationalization framework for JavaScript. It provides a complete solution for localizing applications, including support for pluralization, context, and interpolation. Compared to @wordpress/i18n, i18next offers more advanced features and is suitable for a wider range of applications beyond WordPress.

react-intl

react-intl is a library for internationalizing React applications. It provides components and an API to format dates, numbers, and strings, and to handle pluralization and translations. While @wordpress/i18n is tailored for WordPress, react-intl is specifically designed for React applications.

polyglot

Polyglot.js is a small library for internationalizing JavaScript applications. It provides a simple API for translating strings and handling pluralization. Polyglot.js is more lightweight compared to @wordpress/i18n and is suitable for projects that require basic i18n support.

README

Internationalization (i18n)

Internationalization utilities for client-side localization. See How to Internationalize Your Plugin for server-side documentation.

Installation

Install the module:

npm install @wordpress/i18n --save

This package assumes that your code will run in an ES2015+ environment. If you're using an environment that has limited or no support for such language features and APIs, you should include the polyfill shipped in @wordpress/babel-preset-default in your code.

Usage

import { sprintf, _n } from '@wordpress/i18n';

sprintf( _n( '%d hat', '%d hats', 4, 'text-domain' ), 4 );
// 4 hats

For a complete example, see the Internationalization section of the Block Editor Handbook.

API

createI18n

Create an i18n instance

Parameters

• initialData [LocaleData]: Locale data configuration.
• initialDomain [string]: Domain for which configuration applies.
• hooks [Hooks]: Hooks implementation.

Returns

• I18n: I18n instance.

defaultI18n

Default, singleton instance of I18n.

getLocaleData

Returns locale data by domain in a Jed-formatted JSON object shape.

Related

• http://messageformat.github.io/Jed/

Parameters

• domain [string]: Domain for which to get the data.

Returns

• LocaleData: Locale data.

hasTranslation

Check if there is a translation for a given string (in singular form).

Parameters

• single string: Singular form of the string to look up.
• context [string]: Context information for the translators.
• domain [string]: Domain to retrieve the translated text.

Returns

• boolean: Whether the translation exists or not.

isRTL

Check if current locale is RTL.

RTL (Right To Left) is a locale property indicating that text is written from right to left. For example, the he locale (for Hebrew) specifies right-to-left. Arabic (ar) is another common language written RTL. The opposite of RTL, LTR (Left To Right) is used in other languages, including English (en, en-US, en-GB, etc.), Spanish (es), and French (fr).

Returns

• boolean: Whether locale is RTL.

resetLocaleData

Resets all current Tannin instance locale data and sets the specified locale data for the domain. Accepts data in a Jed-formatted JSON object shape.

Related

• http://messageformat.github.io/Jed/

Parameters

• data [LocaleData]: Locale data configuration.
• domain [string]: Domain for which configuration applies.

setLocaleData

Merges locale data into the Tannin instance by domain. Accepts data in a Jed-formatted JSON object shape.

Related

• http://messageformat.github.io/Jed/

Parameters

• data [LocaleData]: Locale data configuration.
• domain [string]: Domain for which configuration applies.

sprintf

Returns a formatted string. If an error occurs in applying the format, the original format string is returned.

Related

• https://www.npmjs.com/package/sprintf-js

Parameters

• format string: The format of the string to generate.
• args ...*: Arguments to apply to the format.

Returns

• string: The formatted string.

subscribe

Subscribes to changes of locale data

Parameters

• callback SubscribeCallback: Subscription callback

Returns

• UnsubscribeCallback: Unsubscribe callback

_n

Translates and retrieves the singular or plural form based on the supplied number.

Related

• https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/_n/

Parameters

• single string: The text to be used if the number is singular.
• plural string: The text to be used if the number is plural.
• number number: The number to compare against to use either the singular or plural form.
• domain [string]: Domain to retrieve the translated text.

Returns

• string: The translated singular or plural form.

_nx

Translates and retrieves the singular or plural form based on the supplied number, with gettext context.

Related

• https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/_nx/

Parameters

• single string: The text to be used if the number is singular.
• plural string: The text to be used if the number is plural.
• number number: The number to compare against to use either the singular or plural form.
• context string: Context information for the translators.
• domain [string]: Domain to retrieve the translated text.

Returns

• string: The translated singular or plural form.

_x

Retrieve translated string with gettext context.

Related

• https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/_x/

Parameters

• text string: Text to translate.
• context string: Context information for the translators.
• domain [string]: Domain to retrieve the translated text.

Returns

• string: Translated context string without pipe.

__

Retrieve the translation of text.

Related

• https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/functions/__/

Parameters

• text string: Text to translate.
• domain [string]: Domain to retrieve the translated text.

Returns

• string: Translated text.

Contributing to this package

This is an individual package that's part of the Gutenberg project. The project is organized as a monorepo. It's made up of multiple self-contained software packages, each with a specific purpose. The packages in this monorepo are published to npm and used by WordPress as well as other software projects.

To find out more about contributing to this package or Gutenberg as a whole, please read the project's main contributor guide.