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CLDR 复数规则:跨语言验证 i18n 复数类别

英语有 2 种复数形式,阿拉伯语有 6 种,俄语有 4 种。如果 i18n 设置只处理 'one' 和 'other',应用在大多数语言中都会出错。本指南说明 CLDR 复数规则及其验证方法。

1

什么是 CLDR 复数规则?

Unicode CLDR(Common Locale Data Repository)定义六个复数类别:zero、one、two、few、many 和 other。每种语言使用其中一部分,并有特定数字规则。英语使用 one(恰好为 1)和 other(其余)。但大多数语言更复杂,错误的复数形式会导致语法不通,使应用显得不专业。

The plural problem
// English has 2 plural forms: one, other
// "1 item" vs "2 items"

// But many languages have more:
// Arabic: 6 forms (zero, one, two, few, many, other)
// Polish: 3 forms (one, few, other)
// Japanese: 1 form (other)
// Czech: 3 forms (one, few, other)

// If you only provide "one" and "other",
// Arabic and Polish users see broken text.
每种语言都必须定义 'other' 类别。没有其他类别匹配时,它用作回退。如果只定义 'one' 和 'other',在英语中没有问题,但在全球 60% 以上的语言中都会出错。
2

六个复数类别

CLDR 只定义六个复数类别。并非每种语言都使用全部类别;英语只使用两个,阿拉伯语使用全部六个。i18n 文件必须定义每种目标语言所需的类别,否则用户会遇到崩溃、原始键或语法错误的文本。

CLDR plural categories
// CLDR defines 6 plural categories:
// zero  - 0 items (Arabic, Latvian)
// one   - 1 item (most languages)
// two   - 2 items (Arabic, Welsh)
// few   - 2-4 items (Polish, Czech, Russian)
// many  - 5-19 items (Arabic, Polish, Russian)
// other - everything else (required for ALL languages)

// Examples by language:
// English:  one, other                    (2 forms)
// French:   one, many, other              (3 forms)
// Arabic:   zero, one, two, few, many, other  (6 forms)
// Japanese: other                         (1 form)
// Polish:   one, few, many, other         (4 forms)
// Russian:  one, few, many, other         (4 forms)
3

各语言的复数类别

常见目标语言所需复数类别的快速参考。定义翻译文件中的复数形式时可使用此表。

Common mistakes
// MISTAKE 1: Only providing "one" and "other"
// en.json
{
  "items_one": "{{count}} item",
  "items_other": "{{count}} items"
}
// This breaks for Arabic (missing zero, two, few, many)

// MISTAKE 2: Hardcoded plural logic
// WRONG:
const text = count === 1 ? "1 item" : `${count} items`
// This fails for languages where "1" isn't the only "one" form

// MISTAKE 3: Missing "other" category
// "other" is REQUIRED for every language
// Without it, some numbers show raw keys

// MISTAKE 4: Translating plural RULES instead of text
// The CLDR rules (one, few, many) are universal
// Only the TEXT after each rule should be translated
4

自动复数验证

i18n-validate 会检查翻译文件中的每个复数键是否定义目标语言所需的全部 CLDR 类别。如果俄语文件只有 'one' 和 'other' 形式,该工具会将缺失的 'few' 和 'many' 类别标为错误。在 CI 中运行它,可在复数问题影响用户前发现问题。

Terminal
# Validate plural forms match CLDR requirements
npx i18n-validate --check-plurals \
  --source locales/en.json \
  --targets 'locales/*.json'

# Output:
# locales/ar.json:
#   items: missing plural forms: zero, two, few, many
#   Expected: zero, one, two, few, many, other
#   Found: one, other
#
# locales/pl.json:
#   items: missing plural forms: few, many
#   Expected: one, few, many, other
#   Found: one, other

# Fix: Add all required forms for each language
# See https://unicode.org/cldr/charts/latest/supplemental/language_plural_rules.html
5

用于复数的 ICU MessageFormat

定义复数翻译的推荐方式是 ICU MessageFormat。它使用嵌入复数规则的单个字符串:{count, plural, one {# 个项目} other {# 个项目}'}。react-intl、vue-i18n、Angular Transloco、Flutter 和大多数现代 i18n 框架都支持 ICU。

ICU plural messages
// ICU MessageFormat handles plurals correctly
// It uses CLDR rules internally

// en.json
{
  "items": "{count, plural, one {# item} other {# items}}"
}

// ar.json
{
  "items": "{count, plural, zero {لا عناصر} one {عنصر واحد} two {عنصران} few {# عناصر} many {# عنصرًا} other {# عنصر}}"
}

// pl.json
{
  "items": "{count, plural, one {# element} few {# elementy} many {# elementów} other {# elementu}}"
}

// ICU also handles ordinals:
{
  "ranking": "{pos, selectordinal, one {#st} two {#nd} few {#rd} other {#th}}"
}
Terminal
# Validate ICU message syntax
npx i18n-validate --check-icu \
  --source locales/en.json \
  --targets 'locales/*.json'

# Catches:
# - Missing plural categories for the target language
# - Syntax errors in ICU messages
# - Mismatched variable names
# - Missing "other" (always required)
ICU MessageFormat 中的 # 符号会替换为格式化后的数量。在复数形式中使用 #,不要硬编码变量名。例如,写作 '# 个项目/# 个项目',而不是显式重复 count 变量。

立即试用 i18n Agent

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CLDR 复数规则常见问题