How to Create a Multilingual Website in React

A multilingual website is a website that can be displayed in multiple languages. This is a valuable feature for businesses that want to reach a global audience. React is a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces, and it can be used to create multilingual websites in a relatively straightforward way. In this blog post, we will walk you through the steps involved in creating a multilingual website in React. We will use the react-i18next library to handle the translation of our website's content. What is Multilingual Website in React? A multilingual website is a website that can be displayed in multiple languages. This is a valuable feature for businesses that want to reach a global audience. React is a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces, and it can be used to create multilingual websites in a relatively straightforward way. Benefits of creating a multilingual website in React There are several benefits to creating a multilingual website in React: 1. Reach a global audience: A multilingual website allows you to reach a wider audience and increase your sales potential. 2. Improve customer satisfaction: Users appreciate being able to view your website in their own language. This can lead to improved customer satisfaction and loyalty. 3. Build trust: Offering your website in multiple languages shows that you are a global company and that you are committed to serving all of your customers. 4. Improve SEO: Google and other search engines favor websites that are multilingual. This can help you to improve your search engine rankings and get more traffic to your website. How to create a multilingual website in React? Step 1: Install the necessary dependencies To get started, we need to install the react-i18next library and its dependencies. We can do this with the following command: npm install react-i18next i18next Step 2: Create an i18n configuration file Next, we need to create an i18n configuration file. This file will tell the react-i18next library how to translate our website's content. The following is an example of an i18n configuration file: { "locales": ["en", "fr", "de"], "defaultLocale": "en" } This configuration file tells the react-i18next library that our website supports three languages: English, French, and German. The default language is English. Step 3: Create a translation file for each language For each language that we want to support, we need to create a translation file. The translation file will contain the translated versions of our website's content. The following is an example of a translation file for English: { "welcome": "Welcome to my website!" } The translation file is just a JSON object, where the keys are the strings that we want to translate and the values are the translated versions of those strings. Step 4: Use the react-i18next library to translate your website's content Once we have created our i18n configuration file and translation files, we can use the react-i18next library to translate our website's content. The following is an example of how to use the react-i18next library to translate a string: import { useTranslation } from "react-i18next"; const MyComponent = () => { const { t } = useTranslation(); return <h1>{t("welcome")}</h1>; }; The useTranslation() hook returns an object with a t() method. The t() method takes a string as an argument and returns the translated version of that string. Step 5: Provide a language selector We also need to provide a way for users to switch between languages. We can do this by adding a language selector to our website. The following is an example of a simple language selector: <select onChange={(e) => changeLanguage(e.target.value)}> <option value="en">English</option> <option value="fr">French</option> <option value="de">German</option> </select> The changeLanguage() function is responsible for updating the current language. Step 6: Test your multilingual website Once we have completed all of the above steps, we need to test our multilingual website to make sure that it is working properly. We can do this by visiting our website in different browsers and with different languages selected. We should make sure that all of the content on our website is translated correctly. Conclusion In conclusion, creating a multilingual website in React involves implementing a robust internationalization (i18n) solution to serve content in multiple languages, which includes translating text, managing locale-specific data, and handling user language preferences. For expert guidance and development in creating a multilingual React website, CronJ stands out as a trusted resource. With their expertise in React development, CronJ can help you design and implement a seamless and user-friendly multilingual experience. https://www.cronj.com/blog/multilingual-websites-wordpress-vs-react-guide-for-ctos/