3.1.1. Use the lang attribute in the <html> tag to define the main language of the page
To ensure the correct reproduction of text content, a declaration of the main language must be included on each page. Use the lang attribute in the <html> tag for this.
For example, for a page in French, specify:
<html lang="fr">
Tip
To enter the lang attribute, you need to use the two-letter ISO 639-1 code, or if it is not available, the three-letter ISO 639-2 code.
The main codes to be used are as follows:
enfor English.frfor French.esfor Spanish.defor German.itfor Italian.
The up-to-date, exhaustive, list of codes is maintained at the following address: http://www.loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/English_list.php.
Related recommendations
- Previous recommendation: 2.2.1. Ensure the correct encoding of all characters
- Next recommendation: 3.2.1. Use the lang attribute to indicate a change in the language
