Languages Laravel Package

Getting Started

Install via Composer: composer require gettext/languages. Start with static exports for performance—run vendor/bin/export-plural-rules php --output=lang_data.php during build/deploy. In code, include it: $langs = include 'lang_data.php';. For quick prototyping, use dynamic loading: Language::getById('fr_FR') returns a rich Gettext\Languages\Language object with id, name, formula, and categories.

Implementation Patterns

• Build-time data generation: Embed generated PHP files (export-plural-rules php) to avoid runtime overhead in production. Useful for CLI tools, CMS plugins, or localization scaffolding.
• Dynamic locale selection: Use Language::getAll() to populate language dropdowns with full metadata (e.g., territory, script) for UIs. Filter by base language via baseLanguage or territory for smart defaults.
• Plural rule integration: Feed formula and categories into custom pluralization engines (e.g., for JS or custom i18n libraries). The package supplies exact CLDR-derived plural forms—critical for accurate messaging like “1 item” vs “0 items”.
• Legacy systems: Export .po headers (export-plural-rules po --language=es) to auto-generate header templates for translation workflows (e.g., Poedit, Weblate).
• CLI tooling: Wrap export-plural-rules in deployment scripts—use --reduce=yes to trim redundant variants (e.g., omit nl_BE when nl suffices) or --us-ascii for environments with encoding constraints.

Gotchas and Tips

• PHP ternary precedence: The default --parenthesis=yes is essential—omit it for non-PHP targets (e.g., Ruby, JS) where associativity differs. Always double-check generated formulas if embedding into other languages.
• Namespace change: Prior to v2.0, used GettextLanguages\*; modern versions use Gettext\Languages\*. Update imports if upgrading from legacy code.
• Locale normalization: getById('en-us') and getById('en_US') are both accepted and normalized to en_US—safe for user input but confirm case consistency in stored IDs.
• CLDR drift: Re-run exports periodically (e.g., via CI). Major CLDR upgrades (e.g., v46→v47) can alter plural rules (Italian, Spanish, etc.); test plural behavior post-update.
• Performance caveat: getAll() hydrates all 300+ languages; cache or pre-filter in production. Use getById() or static exports for better scalability.
• Superseded codes: Check supersededBy when processing legacy locale IDs (e.g., jw → jv). Handle gracefully to avoid missing translations.