Localisation

In IT, internationalisation and localisation are means of adapting computer software for non-native environments, such as other nations or cultures, for example.

 

Internationalisation is the process of designing a software application so that it can be adapted to various languages and regions of the world without requiring any changes in the way it is engineered.

 

Localisation is the process of adapting software to suit a region or a particular language by adding locale-specific elements and translated texts.

 

Because of their length, these terms are often abbreviated to i18n (where 18 represents the number of letters between the “i” and the “n” of internationalisation, a convention dating from the 70s and 80s) and L10n, the capital “L” helping to distinguish it from the lowercase “i” in i18n.

 

Some companies use the term “globalisation” (g11n) which combines internationalisation and localisation.

The advent of IT and the Internet has revolutionised the role of the translator and created translation activities that are now essential to the life of IT products.                       

Software and websites are tools that are distributed and used throughout the world and therefore now form part of large-scale translation projects.

 

Their localisation is a fundamental activity in any process of international distribution or marketing. The translator then becomes an essential element in the success of a product in the public arena.