# i18n Quickstart URL: /bengal/docs/content/i18n/quickstart/ Section: i18n Description: Set up a bilingual site with gettext PO/MO in 5 minutes --- > For a complete page index, fetch /bengal/llms.txt. This guide walks you through setting up a bilingual (English/Spanish) site with Bengal's gettext workflow. ## 1. Configure Languages Add to `bengal.toml`: ```toml [i18n] default_language = "en" strategy = "prefix" content_structure = "dir" fallback_to_default = true gettext_domain = "messages" languages = [ { code = "en", name = "English", weight = 1 }, { code = "es", name = "Español", weight = 2 }, ] ``` - **strategy**: `prefix` produces `/en/`, `/es/` URLs - **content_structure**: `dir` uses `content/en/`, `content/es/` folders - **gettext_domain**: Domain name for PO/MO files (default `messages`) ## 2. Create Content Structure ``` content/ ├── en/ │ ├── _index.md # English home │ └── about.md └── es/ ├── _index.md # Spanish home └── about.md ``` Each locale has its own directory. Pages with the same path (e.g. `about.md`) are linked as translations via `translation_key`. ## 3. Extract UI Strings Scan your templates for `t("key")` calls: ```bash bengal i18n extract -o messages.pot ``` This creates `messages.pot` with all keys found in templates. Copy it to each locale: ```bash mkdir -p i18n/en/LC_MESSAGES i18n/es/LC_MESSAGES cp messages.pot i18n/en/LC_MESSAGES/messages.po cp messages.pot i18n/es/LC_MESSAGES/messages.po ``` ## 4. Add Translations Edit each `.po` file. Example `i18n/es/LC_MESSAGES/messages.po`: ```po msgid "Home" msgstr "Inicio" msgid "About" msgstr "Acerca de" msgid "Welcome" msgstr "Bienvenido" ``` Use a PO editor like [Poedit](https://poedit.net/) for a friendlier workflow. ## 5. Compile and Build ```bash bengal i18n compile bengal build ``` The `compile` step converts `.po` → `.mo` (binary, faster at runtime). Output goes to `public/en/`, `public/es/`, etc. ## 6. Check Coverage ```bash bengal i18n status ``` Shows per-locale translation coverage. Use `--fail-on-missing-translations` in CI to gate on completeness. ## Template Usage In Kida or Jinja templates: ```html {# Translate a key #} {{ t("Home") }} {# With parameters #} {{ t("greeting", {"name": user.name}) }} {# Override language #} {{ t("About", lang="es") }} {# Plural-aware translation #} {{ nt("1 item", "{n} items", count) }} {# Plural with extra params #} {{ nt("1 {thing}", "{n} {thing}s", count, {"thing": "file"}) }} {# Current locale and text direction #} ``` ## Next Steps - [[docs/content/i18n/rtl|RTL Layout]] — RTL layout for Arabic/Hebrew - [[docs/content/i18n/translator-guide|Translator Guide]] — Contributor workflow for translations