i18next VS i18next-locize-backend

When starting a new project with Next.js these days, next-intl and zod are my go to libraries for internationalization and schema validation, respectively. Of course, when using zod for client-facing validations I would like to translate potential error messages. The package zod-i18n can be used to achieve this for i18next, a popular alternative internationalization library. This means that by using this library as starting point one can quickly achieve zod translation with next-intl.

The best way to implement internationalization is to use an internationalization framework library, such as i18next. With this kind of library, you can easily handle translations and automatically display your frontend labels in the user's language. The frontend application also needs to be flexible and easily configurable so that its layout can change accordingly, reading from left to right or right to left. CSS allows this with the rtl and ltr CSS direction property.

For reference, I am using i18next for providing translations, which is configured to use the english message string as a key for the translations and fallback to it if no translation is found in the chosen language. I also use the official svelte-i18next integration. It wraps the i18next object in a Svelte store and, among other things, provides reactivity when the language is changed.

// app/components/BuiltInFormatsDemo.tsx 'use client'; import React from 'react'; import {useTranslation} from '../i18n/client'; import type {LocaleTypes} from '../i18n/settings'; import {useParams} from 'next/navigation'; const BuiltInFormatsDemo = () => { let locale = useParams()?.locale as LocaleTypes; const {t} = useTranslation(locale, 'built-in-demo'); return (

{/* "number": "Number: {{val, number}}", */} {t('number', { val: 123456789.0123, })} p>

{/* "currency": "Currency: {{val, currency}}", */} {t('currency', { val: 123456789.0123, style: 'currency', currency: 'USD', })} p>

{/* "dateTime": "Date/Time: {{val, datetime}}", */} {t('dateTime', { val: new Date(1234567890123), formatParams: { val: { weekday: 'long', year: 'numeric', month: 'long', day: 'numeric', }, }, })} p>

{/* "relativeTime": "Relative Time: {{val, relativetime}}", */} {t('relativeTime', { val: 12, style: 'long', })} p>

{/* "list": "List: {{val, list}}", */} {t('list', { // https://www.i18next.com/translation-function/objects-and-arrays#objects // Check the link for more details on `returnObjects` val: t('weekdays', {returnObjects: true}), })} p> div> ); }; export default BuiltInFormatsDemo;

As our world becomes increasingly interconnected, the development of web applications that cater to a global audience takes precedence among developers. If you're a TypeScript developer, you're likely acquainted with the advantages of static typing and the assurance it provides in your codebase. When it comes to internationalization (i18n) and localization (l10n), maintaining the same level of type safety becomes crucial. This is precisely where i18next, an influential i18n framework, enters the picture.

check i18next

In this article, we will go over how to perform internationalisation in our react app using the i18next framework. I18next is an internationalisation framework written in JavaScript. It comes with everything you need to localise your web, desktop or mobile product such as user language detection, loading and caching translations, and file conversion etc More features can be found in their documentation. (https://www.i18next.com/)

Luckily this is a well-solved problem: https://www.i18next.com/

I am so sorry for all the people using https://www.i18next.com/ and manually defining string ids. Fuck that. I will never write another message id in my life.

Internationalization (i18n) and localization (l10n) are crucial for businesses that want to expand globally and reach a wider audience. To do this, you need a robust solution that can handle different languages and cultural nuances, and this is where i18next and locize come in. These two elements have been designed to help you get the most out of your i18n efforts, and when used together, they are a powerhouse combination that can help you achieve your goals faster and more efficiently. In this video, we'll explore the fastest way to unleash the full power of i18next.

import I18NextVue from 'i18next-vue' import i18next from 'i18next' import Backend from 'i18next-locize-backend' import LanguageDetector from 'i18next-browser-languagedetector' import LastUsed from 'locize-lastused' import { locizePlugin } from 'locize' const isProduction = process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production' const locizeOptions = { projectId: process.env.VUE_APP_LOCIZE_PROJECTID, apiKey: process.env.VUE_APP_LOCIZE_APIKEY, // YOU should not expose your apps API key to production!!! version: process.env.VUE_APP_LOCIZE_VERSION } if (!isProduction) { // locize-lastused // sets a timestamp of last access on every translation segment on locize // -> safely remove the ones not being touched for weeks/months // https://github.com/locize/locize-lastused i18next.use(LastUsed); } export const i18nextPromise = i18next // locize-editor // InContext Editor of locize .use(locizePlugin) // i18next-locize-backend // loads translations from your project, saves new keys to it (saveMissing: true) // https://github.com/locize/i18next-locize-backend .use(Backend) // detect user language // learn more: https://github.com/i18next/i18next-browser-languageDetector .use(LanguageDetector) // init i18next // for all options read: https://www.i18next.com/overview/configuration-options .init({ debug: !isProduction, fallbackLng: 'en', saveMissing: !isProduction, backend: locizeOptions, locizeLastUsed: locizeOptions }) export default function (app) { app.use(I18NextVue, { i18next }) return app }

We will use the i18next-locize-backend plugin, but only on client side.

import { hydrate } from 'react-dom' import { RemixBrowser } from 'remix' import i18next from 'i18next' import LanguageDetector from 'i18next-browser-languagedetector' import { initReactI18next } from 'react-i18next' import Backend from 'i18next-locize-backend' import LastUsed from 'locize-lastused' import { locizePlugin } from 'locize' import i18nextOptions from './i18nextOptions' const isProduction = process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production' const locizeOptions = { projectId: 'f6d74b76-9677-4a0d-b400-86e1507397ab', apiKey: !isProduction ? '1c2bbc21-027d-4f41-995a-e8beb451cdef' : undefined, // YOU should not expose your apps API key to production!!! version: isProduction ? 'production' : 'latest' } if (!isProduction) { // locize-lastused // sets a timestamp of last access on every translation segment on locize // -> safely remove the ones not being touched for weeks/months // https://github.com/locize/locize-lastused i18next.use(LastUsed) } // initialize i18next using initReactI18next and configuring it if (!i18next.isInitialized) { // prevent i18next to be initialized multiple times i18next // locize-editor // InContext Editor of locize .use(locizePlugin) // i18next-locize-backend // loads translations from your project, saves new keys to it (saveMissing: true) // https://github.com/locize/i18next-locize-backend .use(Backend) // detect user language // learn more: https://github.com/i18next/i18next-browser-languageDetector .use(LanguageDetector) // pass the i18n instance to react-i18next. .use(initReactI18next) // init i18next // for all options read: https://www.i18next.com/overview/configuration-options .init({ ...i18nextOptions, detection: { caches: ['cookie'], lookupCookie: 'i18next' }, backend: locizeOptions, locizeLastUsed: locizeOptions, saveMissing: !isProduction // you should not use saveMissing in production }) .then(() => { // then hydrate your app wrapped in the RemixI18NextProvider return hydrate( , document ) }) }

const getGreetingTime = () => { const split_afternoon = 12; // 24hr time to split the afternoon const split_evening = 17; // 24hr time to split the evening const currentHour = moment().hour(); if (currentHour >= split_afternoon && currentHour <= split_evening) { return 'afternoon'; } else if (currentHour >= split_evening) { return 'evening'; } return 'morning'; } const rerender = () => { // start localizing, details: // https://github.com/i18next/jquery-i18next#usage-of-selector-function $('body').localize(); $('#footerMessage').localize({ context: getGreetingTime() }); $('title').text($.t('head.title')) $('meta[name=description]').attr('content', $.t('head.description')) } const locizeOptions = { projectId: '8d751621-323e-4bda-94c8-7d2368102e62', apiKey: '302aca54-2ea8-4b9f-b5f0-df1369c59427' // YOU should not expose your apps API key to production!!! }; i18next.on('editorSaved', rerender); // used for the inContext editor $(function () { const locizeBackend = new i18nextLocizeBackend(locizeOptions, (err, opts, lngs) => { if (err) return console.error(err); // use plugins and options as needed, for options, detail see // https://www.i18next.com i18next // locize-editor // InContext Editor of locize .use(locize.locizePlugin) // locize-lastused (do not use this in production) // sets a timestamp of last access on every translation segment on locize // -> safely remove the ones not being touched for weeks/months // https://github.com/locize/locize-lastused .use(locizeLastUsed) // i18next-locize-backend // loads translations from your project, saves new keys to it (saveMissing: true) // https://github.com/locize/i18next-locize-backend .use(locizeBackend) // detect user language // learn more: https://github.com/i18next/i18next-browser-languageDetector .use(i18nextBrowserLanguageDetector) // init i18next // for all options read: https://www.i18next.com/overview/configuration-options .init({ ...opts, debug: true, fallbackLng: 'en', backend: locizeOptions, locizeLastUsed: locizeOptions, saveMissing: true // interpolation: { // // legacy usage // format: (value, format, lng) => { // if (value instanceof Date) { // return moment(value).locale(lng).format(format); // } // return value; // } // } }, (err, t) => { if (err) return console.error(err); // new usage i18next.services.formatter.add('LLLL', (value, lng, options) => { return moment(value).locale(lng).format('LLLL'); }); // for options see // https://github.com/i18next/jquery-i18next#initialize-the-plugin jqueryI18next.init(i18next, $, { useOptionsAttr: true }); // fill language switcher Object.keys(lngs).map((lng) => { const opt = new Option(lngs[lng].nativeName, lng); if (lng === i18next.resolvedLanguage) { opt.setAttribute("selected", "selected"); } $('#languageSwitcher').append(opt); }); let languageChangedCounter = 0; $('#languageSwitcher').change((a, b, c) => { const chosenLng = $(this).find("option:selected").attr('value'); i18next.changeLanguage(chosenLng, () => { rerender(); // language changed message languageChangedCounter++; $('#languageChangedNotification').localize({ count: languageChangedCounter }) if (languageChangedCounter === 1) { $('#languageChangedNotification').show(); } }); }); rerender(); $('#loader').hide(); $('#content').show(); }); }); });

Alternatively, use i18next-locize-backend instead of the i18next-fs-backend. If you're running your code in a serverless environment, make sure you read this advice first!

import i18n from 'i18next'; import { initReactI18next } from 'react-i18next'; import LanguageDetector from 'i18next-browser-languagedetector'; import Backend from 'i18next-locize-backend'; import LastUsed from 'locize-lastused'; import { locizePlugin } from 'locize'; import { DateTime } from 'luxon'; const isProduction = process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production'; const locizeOptions = { projectId: process.env.REACT_APP_LOCIZE_PROJECTID, apiKey: process.env.REACT_APP_LOCIZE_APIKEY, // YOU should not expose your apps API key to production!!! referenceLng: process.env.REACT_APP_LOCIZE_REFLNG, version: process.env.REACT_APP_LOCIZE_VERSION }; if (!isProduction) { // locize-lastused // sets a timestamp of last access on every translation segment on locize // -> safely remove the ones not being touched for weeks/months // https://github.com/locize/locize-lastused i18n.use(LastUsed); } i18n // locize-editor // InContext Editor of locize .use(locizePlugin) // i18next-locize-backend // loads translations from your project, saves new keys to it (saveMissing: true) // https://github.com/locize/i18next-locize-backend .use(Backend) // detect user language // learn more: https://github.com/i18next/i18next-browser-languageDetector .use(LanguageDetector) // pass the i18n instance to react-i18next. .use(initReactI18next) // init i18next // for all options read: https://www.i18next.com/overview/configuration-options .init({ debug: true, fallbackLng: 'en', interpolation: { escapeValue: false, // not needed for react as it escapes by default format: (value, format, lng) => { if (value instanceof Date) { return DateTime.fromJSDate(value).setLocale(lng).toLocaleString(DateTime[format]) } return value; } }, backend: locizeOptions, locizeLastUsed: locizeOptions, saveMissing: !isProduction // you should not use saveMissing in production }); export default i18n;