Overview

Site categories are used to organize the sites and content across your organization. With category translations, every user sees category names in their own preferred language automatically — no matter what language the category was originally created in.

There are two ways a category gets translated:

• Automatic translation - a translation is generated for you as soon as a category is created, for every language your organization has turned on.

• Manual translation - an admin can type in their own translation for any language, which will always be shown instead of the automatic one.

Where to manage category translations

Go to Manage Features > Sites > Site Categories to view, create, and translate categories.

Only users with permission to manage all sites can create or edit categories and their translations i.e App managers, Feature owners of Manage sites, manage site system ACG admins and managers. 

How to translate a category

• Go to Manage features > Sites > Site categories.

• Type in the category name. A translate icon will appear next to the field.
  

• Hover on the icon to see the main/ source language in which the category is being created(derived form creators profile language) and anyone visiting this page to edit will see the category in the main language only no matter what’s his profile language.
  

• Click the icon to open the translation window.

• You'll see the original name, and a translation for each language your organization supports.
  

• Your own language appears at the top of the list, followed by the rest in alphabetical order.
  

• To change any translation yourself, simply type over it after toggling on manual translation. Your version will be used instead of the automatic one.
  

• If you change the main language of a category that already has translations, you'll see a confirmation message: it lets you know the category will update to the new main language.
  

When Auto is ON this is the modal you will see -   

When Auto is OFF this is the modal you will see -

• Click Save. From now on, every user will see this category name in their own language.

What language a new category starts in

When you create a new category, it automatically starts in your own profile language - whichever language your account is set to. This happens no matter where you create the category from.

You can always change this afterward from the Site Categories page.

If you turn off automatic translation

If your organization turns off automatic translation from Manage application > Setup > Content translations, categories will no longer be translated for you automatically. You can still type in your own translations for any language, and those will continue to be shown to your users.

Turning automatic translation off or back on does not delete any translations you've already added yourself.

If you edit a category name later

If you rename a category after it's already been translated, your existing manual translations won't automatically update to match the new name. You'll see a note in the translation window letting you know a translation may need to be reviewed.

Your users will continue to see the existing translation until you update it - it won't disappear or be replaced with the original-language name in the meantime.

What your users see

Wherever a category name appears - on a site, in search, in your navigation, anywhere else in the product - each user automatically sees it in their own language, based on their profile settings. There's nothing your users need to do or select.

If a translation hasn't been added yet for a particular language, users of that language will simply see the category's name in the main language until one is added (this can be a case for manual-only translations when auto is off).

Frequently asked questions

Q: Why isn't there a translate button when I'm creating a new site?

Ans: Category translations are managed in one place: Manage Features > Sites > Site Categories. You can pick or create a category while setting up a site, but you'll need to go to the Site Categories page to add or edit its translations.

Q: Why does a category still show an old translation after I renamed it?

Ans: This is expected. Renaming a category doesn't automatically rewrite translations you've typed in yourself. Open the translation window for that category to review and update it.

Q: Did my translations disappear when automatic translation was turned off?

Ans: No. Any translations you've added yourself are always kept, whether automatic translation is turned on or off for your organization.

Q: Can I still add my own translation if automatic translation is off?

Ans: Yes. Turning off automatic translation only stops new translations from being generated for you - you can still type in your own translation for any language at any time, and it will be shown to your users right away.