site-i18n

name	site-i18n
description	Translation workflow for the Voxylio site (next-intl). Use whenever site copy changes, a new locale is added, or messages files are touched — covers the key-parity guard, tone rules per language, and the exact files a locale lives in.

Voxylio site translations

The site (Next.js + next-intl v4) ships in ten locales: en (the reference), zh-CN, zh-TW, ja, ko, fr, de, es, it, pt-BR. All copy lives in site/messages/<locale>.json — components NEVER hardcode user-facing strings.

Invariants

1. en.json is the schema. Every locale must expose exactly its key tree — no missing keys, no extras. Enforced by node site/scripts/check-messages.mjs (script i18n:check in site/package.json). Run it after ANY messages change.
2. Copy changes touch every locale in the same commit. Never leave a locale behind with stale meaning; translate at the same time.
3. Keys are stable identifiers — renaming a key means updating every locale AND the components using it.

Adding a locale

1. site/src/i18n/routing.ts — add the code to locales and its native name to LOCALE_LABELS (the shadcn Select shows endonyms).
2. Create site/messages/<code>.json by translating en.json (full file, same key order).
3. pnpm --filter site i18n:check then pnpm --filter site build (prerenders every locale; a missing key fails the build).
4. Do NOT touch site/src/i18n/request.ts — it resolves messages dynamically per locale.

Translation rules

• Tone per language: FR vouvoie on the site (the extension UI tutoie); ES/IT use tú/tu, PT-BR uses você, DE uses "du"; JA/KO/ZH use the standard polite register; EN stays neutral-direct. Marketing stays concrete, never hype.
• The account requirement is part of the copy since v1.7: dubbing needs a Google sign-in (free plan included). Never reintroduce "no account" claims; the honest angle is "no card, no quota". Owner decision: never write "the free plan is enough" — it undersells Pro.
• Product terms NOT translated: Voxylio, Chrome, Chrome Web Store, GitHub, Pro, DeepL, Polar, shadow DOM, popup, MIT.
• Prices are in USD — the Polar product is USD-based, never advertise EUR. Local formatting: $7.99 (en/ja/ko/zh), 7,99 $ (fr/es/de/it), US$ 7,99 (pt-BR). Card figures live in Pricing.price* keys.
• "65+ languages" claims: keep in sync with packages/core/src/languages.js (currently 71 entries — the copy says "more than 65" on purpose; update everywhere at once if the claim changes).
• <accent>…</accent> in Hero.title is a rich-text tag — keep it wrapping the equivalent words, never translate the tag itself.
• {date} and other ICU placeholders must survive verbatim.

Where language ALSO appears (outside messages)

• Extension UI strings: apps/chrome/static/_locales/{fr,en} (chrome i18n — separate system, French is the source of truth there).
• Store listing: extension/STORE.md.
• OG/meta: Meta.* keys per locale (title ≤ 60 chars, description ≤ 160 chars for clean SERP display).