Babel/text

User language boxes list the languages a Wikimedia editor is comfortable communicating in, and their proficiency. This improves communication across the diverse community, both directly and by helping find interpreters and translators.

Usage

Babel user information
en-N This user has a native understanding of English. fr-3 Cet utilisateur dispose de connaissances avancées en français.
Users by language

You can add user information to your user page by inserting code like this:

{{#babel:en-N|fr-3}}

This outputs the boxes you see at right. You can add as many languages as you want, in the form language code-proficiency level.

Language code

The extension recognizes standard ISO 639 (1–3) language codes. You can find your language by searching the list of ISO 639-1 codes or a database of ISO 639 1–3 codes.

Proficiency

The proficiency describes how well you can communicate in the language. It's indicated by a single letter from this table:

Proficiency	Meaning
0	You don't understand the language at all.
1	You can understand written material or simple questions.
2	You can edit simple texts or participate in basic discussions.
3	You can write in this language with some small errors.
4	You can speak like a native speaker (though it's not your birth language).
5	You have professional proficiency; you understand the nuances of the language well enough to translate advanced documents.
N	You are a native speaker of the language and have a thorough grasp of it, including colloquialisms and idioms.

See also

• mw:Extension:Babel (the underlying software extension)
• Language combination indicators for translators