xliff1.9 KB

XLIFF 2.0 — Plurals (en to pl)

The XLIFF 2.0 half of a version twin covering how each version expresses a plural group. XLIFF 1.2 uses a <group restype="x-gettext-plurals"> whose trans-units are ordered by gettext form index; XLIFF 2.0 dropped restype, so the same content becomes one <unit> per CLDR category, named by category rather than by index.

Internationalization Localization catalogs

Preview — first 45 linesxliff

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!-- XLIFF 2.0 also has no plural construct, and it deliberately dropped restype, so the 1.2
     convention above does not survive a conversion. The portable 2.0 form is one <unit> per
     plural category, named by CLDR CATEGORY rather than by gettext form index, with the category
     recorded in a <note>. Note the consequence: the 1.2 file says "form 2" and this file says
     "many" — a converter has to know the locale's Plural-Forms expression to map between them. -->
<xliff xmlns="urn:oasis:names:tc:xliff:document:2.0" version="2.0" srcLang="en" trgLang="pl">
  <file id="f1" original="messages.po">
    <group id="files" name="files">
      <notes>
        <note category="plural-source">%d file / %d files</note>
        <note category="plural-categories">one, few, many (CLDR cardinal categories used by pl)</note>
      </notes>
      <unit id="files.one" name="files">
        <notes><note category="plural-category">one</note></notes>
        <segment state="translated">
          <source>%d file</source>
          <target>%d plik</target>
        </segment>
      </unit>
      <unit id="files.few" name="files">
        <notes><note category="plural-category">few</note></notes>
        <segment state="translated">
          <source>%d files</source>
          <target>%d pliki</target>
        </segment>
      </unit>
      <unit id="files.many" name="files">
        <notes><note category="plural-category">many</note></notes>
        <segment state="translated">
          <source>%d files</source>
          <target>%d plików</target>
        </segment>
      </unit>
    </group>
    <unit id="browser.title">
      <notes><note>Window title for the file browser</note></notes>
      <segment state="translated">
        <source>Files</source>
        <target>Pliki</target>
      </segment>
    </unit>
  </file>
</xliff>

Specifications

Source Language: en
Target Language: pl
Aspect: how each version expresses a plural group
Twin Of: the same content in the other XLIFF version
Version: 2.0 (OASIS)
Namespace: urn:oasis:names:tc:xliff:document:2.0
Seed: 20260807
Wave: p7
Line Endings: LF

Testing contract

Expected to pass

Scenario: Convert one file to the other version and back.
Expected result: The round trip needs the locale's Plural-Forms expression to map form index 2 to the CLDR category 'many' — a converter that maps positionally mis-keys the third form.

What is a .xliff file?

XLIFF (XML Localization Interchange File Format) is an OASIS-standard XML format for exchanging translatable content between tools. It wraps source and target text in trans-units (1.2) or units and segments (2.0), with metadata, states, and notes. It is the lingua franca between authoring tools and translation-management systems.

How to use this file

Use an example .xliff file to test XLIFF parsers and validators, CAT tools and translation-management systems, and converters between XLIFF 1.2 and 2.0 or to other catalog formats.

How to use this file for testing

“XLIFF 2.0 — Plurals (en to pl)” is a deterministic Novus Examples fixture for Internationalization, Localization catalogs. Parallel text and accented, multi-script content — for testing translation pipelines, Unicode handling, and localization tooling.

Documented properties for this file: seed 20260807 · LF. Compare results against paired or grouped companions on this page when present (clean↔damaged, searchable↔scanned, or format twins) so scores stay reproducible across runs.

Download the file once, keep the path stable in CI or local scripts, and treat the spec table as the contract: dimensions, seeds, field lists, and roles are intentional. Corrupt or invalid samples are labelled as such — expect parsers to fail loudly rather than silently accept them.

Translation-catalog fixtures carry the same message set across formats, each with its native placeholder syntax. Test your i18n loader, catalog converter, or translation-memory tool, and use the RTL and CJK variants to check bidirectional text and Unicode handling.

Load the catalog with your i18n framework and verify placeholder interpolation and plural handling; the RTL and CJK variants exercise bidirectional text and font fallback.

Code examples

from translate.storage.xliff import xlifffile  # pip install translate-toolkit

store = xlifffile.parsefile("plurals-2.0.xliff")
for unit in store.units[:5]:
    print(unit.source, "->", unit.target)