[Bug 14470] New: Language handling in microdata

http://www.w3.org/Bugs/Public/show_bug.cgi?id=14470

           Summary: Language handling in microdata
           Product: HTML WG
           Version: unspecified
          Platform: PC
        OS/Version: All
            Status: NEW
          Severity: normal
          Priority: P2
         Component: HTML Microdata (editor: Ian Hickson)
        AssignedTo: ian@hixie.ch
        ReportedBy: jeni@jenitennison.com
         QAContact: public-html-bugzilla@w3.org
                CC: mike@w3.org, public-html-wg-issue-tracking@w3.org,
                    public-html@w3.org


It is not clear how microdata handles languages. Language is not mentioned as
part of the microdata data model [1]. It is not exposed within microdata JSON
[2]. It is not used in the algorithm for creating vCard [3] or iCalendar [4],
where it should be used to provide a value for the LANGUAGE property [5][6].

There is a list of examples of multi-lingual content on the web at [7]. Another
example is the EUR-LEX site where information about items of European
legislation is available in multiple languages [8] or on legislation.gov.uk
where Welsh and English titles for the same item of legislation are listed
together [9].

Microdata will be unusable for multi-lingual content if it doesn't preserve the
language of textual values. The spec should make it clear whether language
should be preserved by consumers, ignored, or if this is implementation
dependent. Regardless, the vCard and iCalendar conversions in the spec should
take account of language.

[1]
http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/multipage/microdata.html#the-microdata-model
[2]
http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/multipage/microdata.html#json
[3]
http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/multipage/microdata.html#conversion-to-vcard
[4]
http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/multipage/microdata.html#conversion-to-icalendar
[5] http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc6350#section-5.1
[6] http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5545#section-3.2.10
[7] http://microformats.org/wiki/multilingual-examples
[8]
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31994Y0702(01):FR:NOT
[9] http://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi

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Received on Friday, 14 October 2011 19:21:11 UTC