Getting Started

Install the release that includes Laravel 8 support: composer require laravelarab/<package>:^1.8 (confirm the exact Composer name in the README). v1.8.0 is the first line explicitly advertising Laravel 8 compatibility, so pin ^1.8 if you are on Laravel 8.
Check package discovery. Laravel 8 supports auto-discovery via extra.laravel.providers; if config or translations are not loading, inspect config/app.php and run php artisan package:discover.
Publish the package assets using the tags documented by the package, for example:
- php artisan vendor:publish --tag=<package>-config
- php artisan vendor:publish --tag=<package>-lang
- php artisan vendor:publish --tag=<package>-views only if you need to override views.
Set the application locale to Arabic in config/app.php ('locale' => 'ar') or per request with App::setLocale('ar').
First use case: render a simple Arabic page and verify that __('...')/@lang('...') resolves, the HTML uses dir="rtl" lang="ar", and published language files are being read from lang/ar.

Implementation Patterns

Locale switching middleware: create a SetLocale middleware that reads the user preference or session value and calls App::setLocale($locale). Register it in the web middleware group so every request resolves the correct locale.
Blade usage: use __() or @lang() for strings, and set direction dynamically, e.g. <html lang="{{ str_replace('_', '-', app()->getLocale()) }}" dir="{{ app()->getLocale() === 'ar' ? 'rtl' : 'ltr' }}">. If the package exposes RTL/LTR Blade directives, prefer those to keep templates consistent.
Validation and attributes: publish and customize lang/ar/validation.php and lang/ar/attributes.php. Use localized attribute names so validation messages read naturally in Arabic.
Dates and numbers: if the package provides Hijri or Arabic numeral helpers, use them at the presentation layer. Otherwise use Carbon with ->locale('ar') and PHP’s NumberFormatter with an Arabic locale such as ar_EG.
Route organisation: apply the locale middleware to route groups rather than individual routes, and keep locale-prefixed URLs (/ar/..., /en/...) if the application supports multiple languages.
Testing: assert the active locale and translated output in feature tests, e.g. $this->get('/ar')->assertSee(__('messages.welcome', [], 'ar')); and $this->assertSame('ar', app()->getLocale());.
Production: run php artisan config:cache after changing default locale settings, and ensure published language files are deployed with the application.

Version constraints are the main risk: v1.8.0 only advertises Laravel 8 support. On Laravel 9 or 10, check for a newer release before upgrading; otherwise Composer may resolve an older version or fail. Laravel 8 itself requires PHP ^7.3|^8.0, so confirm your PHP version.
The release notes are minimal and indicate only Laravel 8 support. No breaking changes or new features are documented, so treat v1.8.0 as a compatibility release and regression-test locale switching after upgrading.
Config cache can hide changes: if published config or locale defaults appear ignored, run php artisan config:clear and then php artisan config:cache.
Locale fallback: set 'fallback_locale' => 'en' in config/app.php to avoid raw translation keys when an Arabic string is missing. Publish all language files rather than copying only one.
RTL is not automatic: translated strings do not flip layout. Add an RTL stylesheet or use logical CSS properties, and test with dir="rtl".
Debugging: use php artisan tinker to check app()->getLocale() and trans('...'), and inspect the published lang/ar path. Use vendor:publish --force only when you intend to overwrite customised language files.
Extension points: prefer publishing and editing language/config files over modifying vendor code. If the package exposes custom locale resolvers or view overrides, bind them in a service provider so upgrades remain straightforward.