Example_Localization

Example iOS application in Swift to demonstrate how to properly use Strings and StringsDict files to achieve localization.

Basic Localization

Localizing strings is fairly straightforward. Strings files are used for this. Each localized string in a Strings file is represented by a key-value pair. Each locale supported in the application has it's own Strings file. The key of the key-value pair is consistent across locales and Strings files. The value of the key-value pair is the actual "display" value which is localized in the locale of the String file. At run time, the locale or language of the device dictates which Strings file is used when an NSLocalizedString with a provided key is intialized.

Strings files support parameterization via String Format Specifiers.

Examples

Acceptable values in Strings files include:

"OK"
"Hello World!"
"Hello %@" where "%@" is a name.

Unacceptable values in Strings files include:

"Found %d matches in your area!"
"Found %d match in your area!"

You should NOT use Strings files for translations that have pluralization. You'll use StringsDict for these cases.

Pluralized Localization

Localizing strings with pluralization is a little more complex. StringsDict files are used for this. Similar to Strings files, each locale or language the application supports should have its own StringsDict file. Again, at run time, the locale or language of the device dictates which StringsDict file is used when an NSLocalizedString with a provided key is intialized. In general, you should follow this cheat-sheet for the basic setup of a StringsDict file.