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A11ySignal
Level AAWCAG 2.0WCAG 2.1WCAG 2.2EN 301 549 § 9.3.1.2

3.1.2
Language of Parts

Mark up passages that are in a different language from the page.

What the standard says

The human language of each passage or phrase in the content can be programmatically determined except for proper names, technical terms, words of indeterminate language, and words or phrases that have become part of the vernacular of the immediately surrounding text.

Why it matters

Without it, a French quotation in an English page is read with English pronunciation rules.

What a failure looks like

  • failsForeign-language quotations, names and phrases with no `lang` attribute.

How to fix it

  • doWrap them: `<span lang="fr">…</span>`. Proper names and loanwords do not need it.

How A11ySignal checks it

1 automated check runs against this criterion on every scan.

Also under 3.1 Readable