Mixing languages

Greetings,

I know about marking up an entire document (WCAG SC 3.1.1) and parts of 
it (3.1.2), but I wonder whether there are any recommendation regarding 
the mixing of languages in documents. Probably not in WCAG, but maybe 
elsewhere?

For instance, it is not uncommon in Norway that people occasionally 
braid single English words into their sentences. Or, I could be refering 
from a Norwegian page to an article with only an English title.

So the argument would be that many people are not fluent in foreign 
languages, and maybe also that mixing languages increases one's 
cognitive load too much, and the reader might become confused. Thus, 
this should be avoided.

However, after more than 15 years with user testing, I cannot recall to 
have heard a single complaint about this.

Please share your thoughts. Thanks!

-- 
Best regards,
Till Halbach, seniorforsker / senior research scientist
Norwegian Computing Center / Norsk Regnesentral (NR)  |  http://nr.no/

Received on Tuesday, 13 June 2023 21:09:22 UTC