category: framework-deep-dive-ui
All CKEditor 5 WYSIWYG editor features support message localization. It means that the user interface of any feature can be translated into various languages and regions depending on the user's preferences.
CKEditor 5 translation system is open to third-party plugins. Any custom features that you introduce can be localized. The system also provides a way to add missing or overwrite existing translations and supports translating plural forms.
Make sure to use up-to-date CKEditor 5 development tool packages. Versions of the tools older than v19.0.1 do not provide support for features described in this guide.
The CKEditor 5 localization system focuses on the following points:
Before we start, let us explain the meaning of terms that are crucial for the translation process:
{ id: message, string: message } object form.%0 images..po) – A file containing translations for the language in the PO format.
All localizable packages of CKEditor 5 contain such files in the lang/translations/ directory..pot) – A file containing source messages (English sentences) that will be translated.All messages that need localization should be passed to the special CKEditor 5's {@link module:utils/locale~Locale#t t() function}. This function can be retrieved either from the editor's {@link module:utils/locale~Locale} instance: const { t } = editor.locale; or from any view method: const t = this.t;.
As the first argument, the t() function accepts either a string literal or an object literal containing the id, string and plural (optional) properties. The string literal will serve as both the message ID and the message string.
As the second argument, the translation function accepts a value or an array of values. These values will be used to fill the placeholders in more advanced translation scenarios. If the plural property is specified, the first value will be used as the quantity determining the plural form.
Due to the fact that a static code analyzer is used in the translation process, you must use a function named exactly `t()`. It should not be called on a `Locale` instance and it cannot have a different name. The code analyzer looks for *localizable messages* only in `t()` function calls.
For the same reason, the first argument can only be a string literal or an object literal. Variables cannot be passed.
When using the t() function, you can create your own localizable messages or reuse messages created in CKEditor 5 packages that your project depends on. In case of reusing messages, you will not need to worry about translating them as all work will be done by the CKEditor 5 team and Transifex translators. Obviously, {@link framework/guides/contributing/contributing#translating your help in translating} will still be appreciated!
For simple localizable messages, use the string form for simplicity:
const emojiName = 'cat';
// Assuming that the English language was picked:
t( 'insert emoji' ); // "insert emoji"
t( 'insert %0 emoji', emojiName ); // "insert cat emoji"
t( 'insert %0 emoji', [ emojiName ] ); // "insert cat emoji"
For more advanced scenarios, use plain object forms:
const quantity = 3;
// Assuming that the English language was picked:
t( { string: '%0 emoji', id: 'ACTION_EMOJI' }, 'insert' ); // "insert emoji"
t( { string: '%0 emoji', plural: '%0 emojis', id: 'N_EMOJIS' }, quantity ); // "3 emojis"
t( { string: '%1 %0 emoji', plural: '%1 %0 emojis', id: 'ACTION_N_EMOJIS' }, [ quantity, 'Insert' ] ); // "Insert 3 emojis"
This example shows how to create a localizable user interface of a plugin. Here is how you can create a button that will insert a smiling face emoji. The button will have a localizable tooltip.
// ...
editor.ui.componentFactory.add( 'smilingFaceEmoji', locale => {
const buttonView = new ButtonView( locale );
// The translation function.
const { t } = editor.locale;
// The localized label.
const label = t( 'Insert smiling face emoji' );
buttonView.set( {
label,
icon: emojiIcon,
tooltip: true
} );
buttonView.on( 'execute', () => {
editor.execute( 'insertSmilingFaceEmoji' );
editor.editing.view.focus();
} );
} );
// ...
See {@link framework/guides/creating-simple-plugin how to create a complete plugin} to have a better understanding of creating CKEditor 5 plugins.
{@link module:core/pendingactions~PendingActions Pending actions} are used to inform the user that an action is in progress and they will lose data if they exit the editor at the given moment. Here is how you can localize them:
class FileRepository {
// ...
updatePendingAction() {
// ...
const pendingActions = this.editor.plugins.get( PendingActions );
// ...
const t = this.editor.t;
const getMessage = value => t( 'Upload in progress (%0%).', value ); // Upload in progress (12%).
this._pendingAction = pendingActions.add( getMessage( this.uploadedPercent ) );
this._pendingAction.bind( 'message' ).to( this, 'uploadedPercent', getMessage );
}
}
First of all, if you found a missing or incorrect translation in any of CKEditor 5 features, {@link framework/guides/contributing/contributing#translating see how you can contribute to the project}. CKEditor 5 is an Open Source project used by people from all around the world, so your help will be appreciated by others.
Adding translations to the editor can be done in three ways to satisfy various needs.
add() function.
This can be done before initiating the CKEditor 5 editor instance but it requires importing the CKEditor 5 utility function.window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS object.
This can be done before initiating the CKEditor 5 editor instance..po files with translations in the lang/translations/ directory of the published package like other CKEditor 5 packages do.
This option will be useful for third-party plugin creators as it allows bundling translations only for needed languages during the webpack compilation step.add() functionThe first option for adding translations is via {@link module:utils/translation-service.add the translation-service's add() helper}. This utility adds translations to the global window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS object by extending it. Since it needs to be imported, it works only before building the editor.
Starting with the CKEditor 5 v19.0.0 release, the add() method now accepts an optional getPluralForm() function as the third argument. This function is only needed for defining the plural form if no language file was loaded for a particular language. It also accepts an array of translations for a message if the message should support singular and plural forms.
add( 'pl', {
'Add space': [ 'Dodaj spację', 'Dodaj %0 spacje', 'Dodaj %0 spacji' ]
} );
// Assuming that the Polish language was picked:
t( { string: 'Add space', plural: 'Add %0 spaces' }, 1 ) // "Dodaj spację"
t( { string: 'Add space', plural: 'Add %0 spaces' }, 2 ) // "Dodaj 2 spacje"
t( { string: 'Add space', plural: 'Add %0 spaces' }, 5 ) // "Dodaj 5 spacji"
window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS objectThe second option is adding translations via the global window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS object.
For each language that should be supported, the dictionary property of this object should be extended and the getPluralForm() function should be provided if missing.
The dictionary property is a message ID ⇒ translations map, where the translations can be either a string or an array of translations with plural forms for the given language if the message should support plural forms as well.
The getPluralForm() property should be a function that returns the plural form index for a given quantity. Note that when using CKEditor 5 translations, this property will be defined by CKEditor 5 translation assets.
Check an example below that demonstrates a part of the window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS object with Polish translations for the Cancel and Add space message IDs:
{
// Each key should be a valid language code.
pl: {
// A map of translations for the 'pl' language.
dictionary: {
'Cancel': 'Anuluj',
'Add space': [ 'Dodaj spację', 'Dodaj %0 spacje', 'Dodaj %0 spacji' ]
},
// A function that returns the plural form index for the given language.
// Note that you only need to pass this function when you add translations for a new language.
getPluralForm: n => n == 1 ? 0 : n % 10 >= 2 && n % 10 <= 4 && ( n % 100 < 10 || n % 100 >= 20 ) ? 1 : 2
}
// Other languages...
}
It is important to extend the existing properties in the window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS object to not lose other translations. This can be achieved easily using Object.assign() and the || operator.
// Make sure that the global object is defined. If not, define it.
window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS = window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS || {};
// Make sure that the dictionary for Polish translations exist.
window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS[ 'pl' ] = window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS[ 'pl' ] || {};
window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS[ 'pl' ].dictionary = window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS[ 'pl' ].dictionary || {};
// Extend the dictionary for Polish translations with your translations:
Object.assign( window.CKEDITOR_TRANSLATIONS[ 'pl' ].dictionary, {
'Save': 'Zapisz'
} );
If you add a new language, remember to set the getPluralForm() function which should return a number (or a Boolean for languages with simple plural rules like English) that indicates which form should be used for the given value.
.po filesThe third option of adding plugins should fit mostly owners of plugins that contain many localizable messages. Using this option you need to create a .po file per each language code in the lang/translations/ directory containing translations that follow the PO file format.
# lang/translations/es.po
msgid ""
msgstr ""
"Language: es\n"
"Plural-Forms: nplurals=2; plural=(n != 1);\n"
msgid "Align left"
msgstr "Alinear a la izquierda"
Note that by default, the [CKEditor 5 webpack plugin](https://github.com/ckeditor/ckeditor5-dev/tree/master/packages/ckeditor5-dev-webpack-plugin) is configured to parse only the CKEditor 5 source code when looking for *localizable messages* and generating *translation assets*.
If you develop your own plugin outside the CKEditor 5 ecosystem and localize it by creating *PO files*, you should override both the `sourceFilesPattern` and the `packageNamePattern` options to allow the CKEditor 5 webpack plugin to analyze the code and find *messages* with corresponding translations. You should also mention these webpack plugin changes in your package README to make other users build the localized CKEditor 5 editor with your plugin correctly. This obstacle may be simplified in the future when the localization feature gets more popular.
To build and configure a localized editor, follow the steps from the {@link features/ui-language Setting the UI language guide}.
<script> tags or imports to the generated translation assets.