How do I install the Odoo I18N skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add ahmed-lakosha/odoo-i18n in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

What does the Odoo I18N skill do?

Comprehensive Odoo i18n toolkit for extracting translatable strings, validating .po files, generating translation reports, managing Arabic/RTL layouts, and handling multilingual deployments across Odoo 14-19. Context: User wants to extract translatable strings user: "Extract all translatable strings from my Odoo 17 module to a .pot file" assistant: "I will use the odoo-i18n skill to scan Python _() calls, XML translate attributes, and field strings, then generate a properly structured .pot template file." Core trigger - translation extraction workflow. Context: User wants Arabic translation user: "Generate an Arabic .po file for my Odoo module" assistant: "I will use the odoo-i18n skill to create an ar.po file with RTL-aware formatting and placeholder translations for all extractable strings." Language-specific trigger - Arabic/RTL translation generation. Context: User wants to validate a translation file use It is listed under Productivity on SkillMD.

Is Odoo I18N safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: executes scripts. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Odoo I18N?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Odoo I18N free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free. This skill is licensed under MIT.

Who published Odoo I18N?

ahmed-lakosha (@ahmed-lakosha) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Odoo I18N by ahmed-lakosha — Agent Skill

Name: Odoo I18N
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: ahmed-lakosha

Odoo i18n Skill

Provides deep expertise in Odoo internationalization (i18n) and localization (l10n) across Odoo 14-19.

Critical Translation Rules

NEVER use f-strings inside _() -- use % formatting: _('Record %s') % name
NEVER concatenate strings inside _() -- give the translator the full sentence
Use _lt() for class-level strings (selection values, class attributes)
NEVER wrap string= field attributes in _() -- they are auto-translated by Odoo
Save .po files as UTF-8 without BOM
Arabic .po files must have nplurals=6 in Plural-Forms header
Always update the module after editing .po files: -u module --stop-after-init

Workflow 1: Extract Translatable Strings

Scans an Odoo module for all translatable strings and generates .pot (template) and .po (language) files.

Usage

python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_extractor.py --module <path> --lang <code> [--output <dir>] [--no-pot] [--verbose]

Argument	Required	Description
`--module`	Yes	Path to the Odoo module directory
`--lang`	Yes	Target language code (e.g., `ar`, `fr`, `tr`)
`--output`	No	Custom output directory (default: `module/i18n/`)
`--no-pot`	No	Skip generating .pot template
`--verbose`	No	Show all extracted strings

What Gets Extracted

Python (*.py) -- _('...') and _lt('...'):

# Extracted:
raise UserError(_('Record %s not found') % name)
state = fields.Selection([('draft', _lt('Draft'))])
# NOT extracted: _(variable), _(f'Hello {name}')

XML (*.xml) -- string=, help=, placeholder= attributes; name= on menus/actions; HTML text:

<field name="state" string="Status"/>      <!-- extracted -->
<h1>Welcome to our website</h1>            <!-- extracted -->
<record id="view_my_form" model="ir.ui.view">  <!-- NOT extracted -->

JavaScript (*.js) -- _t('...') and _lt('...'):

const msg = _t("Save Changes");   // extracted
const msg = _t(someVariable);     // NOT extracted

Generated File Structure

# Translation template for my_module
msgid ""
msgstr ""
"Project-Id-Version: Odoo Module my_module\n"
"Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8\n"

#: models/my_model.py:45
#, python-format
msgid "Record %s not found"
msgstr ""

Alternative: Odoo's Built-in Extractor

python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-export --modules=my_module --language=ar \
    --output=my_module/i18n/ar.po --stop-after-init

The Odoo CLI extractor includes database strings (model names, action names) that the plugin extractor does not. For production, the built-in extractor is more complete.

After Extraction

Open the .po file in a translation editor (Poedit, Virtaal, or text editor)
Fill in all msgstr entries
Validate: run i18n_validator.py --po-file path/to/ar.po
Check coverage: run i18n_reporter.py --module path/ --lang ar
Load into Odoo: update module or use export/import workflow

Workflow 2: Validate .po Files

Validates a .po file for syntax errors, encoding issues, empty translations, fuzzy entries, format specifier mismatches, and Arabic/RTL-specific problems.

Usage

python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_validator.py --po-file <path> [--lang <code>] [--strict] [--output <file>]

Argument	Required	Description
`--po-file`	Yes	Path to the `.po` file to validate
`--lang`	No	Language code for language-specific checks (auto-detected from filename)
`--strict`	No	Treat untranslated strings as errors instead of warnings
`--output`	No	Write report to a file instead of stdout

What is Validated

Syntax: UTF-8 encoding (no BOM/Latin-1), header with Content-Type/charset/Language/MIME-Version, properly quoted strings, no parse errors.

Translations: Empty msgstr (untranslated), fuzzy flags needing review, duplicate msgid, obsolete (#~) entries.

Format Specifiers: %s/%d/%f count must match; %(name)s named specifiers must all appear:

# WRONG - missing second %s:
msgid "Invoice %s due on %s"
msgstr "fatura %s"
# CORRECT:
msgid "Invoice %s due on %s"
msgstr "fatura %s vadesi %s"

Arabic-Specific (--lang ar): Arabic characters present, encoding artifacts from Latin-1, direction control chars, nplurals=6 required, BIDI overrides flagged.

Common Errors and Fixes

"Charset must be UTF-8":

python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py --action convert --po ar.po --output ar_fixed.po

"Fuzzy translation (needs review)" -- remove the fuzzy flag after verifying:

# Before:                          # After:
#, fuzzy, python-format            #, python-format
msgid "Record %s not found"        msgid "Record %s not found"
msgstr "record not found"          msgstr "record not found"

"Arabic should have nplurals=6":

"Plural-Forms: nplurals=6; plural=n==0 ? 0 : n==1 ? 1 : n==2 ? 2 : n%100>=3 && n%100<=10 ? 3 : n%100>=11 && n%100<=99 ? 4 : 5;\n"

CI/CD Integration

- name: Validate Arabic translations
  run: python odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_validator.py --po-file my_module/i18n/ar.po --lang ar --strict

Exit code 0 = passed (may have warnings), 1 = failed (errors found).

Workflow 3: Find Missing Translations

Compares translatable strings from a module's source files against an existing .po file to report what is missing or incomplete.

Usage

python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_reporter.py --module <path> --lang <code> [--format text|json|csv] [--output <file>] [--min-pct <N>]

Argument	Required	Description
`--module`	Yes	Path to the Odoo module directory
`--lang`	Yes	Language code to check (e.g., `ar`, `fr`)
`--format`	No	Output format: `text` (default), `json`, `csv`
`--output`	No	Write report to a file instead of stdout
`--min-pct`	No	Exit code 1 if completion below threshold

Understanding the Report

Missing: String in source code but NO entry in .po
Empty in .po: Entry exists but msgstr is "" (not yet translated)
Fuzzy: Auto-matched, needs human review; NOT shown to users (Odoo falls back to source)
Completion % = Translated / Total Active Strings * 100 (non-empty, non-fuzzy, non-obsolete)

Workflow: Fixing Missing Translations

Run i18n_reporter.py to identify gaps
Open .po in Poedit, Virtaal, or text editor
Fill in missing msgstr entries
If strings are entirely absent from .po, run i18n_extractor.py first
Validate with i18n_validator.py
Re-run i18n_reporter.py to confirm coverage

Updating .po After Source Changes

# 1. Re-extract new strings
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_extractor.py --module /path/ --lang ar --no-pot
# 2. Merge (preserves existing translations)
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py \
    --action merge --base /path/i18n/ar.po --new /path/i18n/ar.po --output /path/i18n/ar_merged.po
# 3. Check remaining gaps
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_reporter.py --module /path/ --lang ar

Workflow 4: Export/Import via Odoo CLI

Requires PostgreSQL and a valid database.

Exporting Translations

# Single module
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-export --modules=my_module --language=ar \
    --output=my_module/i18n/ar.po --stop-after-init

# Export .pot template (no --language = empty msgstr)
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-export --modules=my_module \
    --output=my_module/i18n/my_module.pot --stop-after-init

# Multiple modules / all installed
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-export --modules=mod1,mod2 --language=ar --output=combined_ar.po --stop-after-init

Importing Translations

# Import .po
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-import=my_module/i18n/ar.po --language=ar --modules=my_module --stop-after-init

# Import and overwrite existing
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-import=my_module/i18n/ar.po --language=ar \
    --modules=my_module --i18n-overwrite --stop-after-init

# Multiple languages
for lang in ar fr tr; do
    python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
        --i18n-import=my_module/i18n/${lang}.po --language=${lang} \
        --modules=my_module --stop-after-init
done

Loading Languages

python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb --load-language=ar --stop-after-init
python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb --load-language=ar,fr,tr --stop-after-init

Check/activate via shell:

# python odoo-bin shell -d mydb
langs = self.env['res.lang'].with_context(active_test=False).search([])
for lang in langs:
    print(f"[{'ACTIVE' if lang.active else 'inactive'}] {lang.code}: {lang.name}")

# Activate
lang = self.env['res.lang'].with_context(active_test=False).search([('code', '=', 'ar')])
lang.active = True
self.env.cr.commit()

Module Update (Simplest Reload)

python -m odoo -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb -u my_module --stop-after-init

Odoo 17+ Specifics

Translations stored as JSON terms internally; export format still .po. Clear cache:

# python odoo-bin shell -d mydb
self.env['ir.translation'].clear_caches()
self.env.cr.commit()

Website Translations

python odoo-bin -c conf/myproject.conf -d mydb \
    --i18n-export --modules=website,my_theme_module --language=ar \
    --output=website_ar.po --stop-after-init

Translation File Locations

module/i18n/
  module.pot    <- Template (not loaded by Odoo)
  ar.po         <- Arabic
  ar_SA.po      <- Saudi variant (overrides ar.po entries)
  fr.po         <- French
  tr.po         <- Turkish

Utility: Merge and Clean .po Files

python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py --action merge --base ar.po --new ar_new.po --output ar_merged.po
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py --action clean --po ar.po
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py --action stats --po ar.po
python ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/odoo-i18n/scripts/i18n_converter.py --action convert --po ar.po --output ar_fixed.po

Supported Languages Quick Reference

Code	Language	RTL?	Plural Forms
`ar` / `ar_SA` / `ar_AE`	Arabic (variants)	Yes	6
`en` / `en_US`	English	No	2
`fr` / `fr_FR`	French	No	2
`tr`	Turkish	No	2
`de`	German	No	2
`es`	Spanish	No	2

Odoo Version Differences

Feature	Odoo 14-15	Odoo 16-17	Odoo 18-19
JS translation import	`import { _t } from "web.core"`	`import { _t } from "@web/core/l10n/translation"`	Same as 16
Bootstrap version	4.x	5.1.3 (RTL built-in)	5.1.3+
Translation storage	`ir.translation` table	JSON terms (internal)	JSON terms
View type for lists	`<tree>`	`<tree>`	`<list>` (19 only)
Controller type	`type='json'`	`type='json'`	`type='jsonrpc'` (19 only)
Visibility attrs	`attrs={'invisible': ...}`	`attrs={'invisible': ...}`	Inline `invisible="expr"` (19 only)

Common Issues

Translations not showing: Update the module with -u module --stop-after-init, then clear browser cache.

Arabic text garbled (mojibake): File saved as Latin-1. Run i18n_converter.py --action convert to fix encoding.

Format specifier error: Ensure %s/%d/%(name)s count matches between msgid and msgstr.

Website shows English for Arabic users: Check (1) Arabic language installed, (2) user language set, (3) module updated after adding translations.

Fuzzy entries: Open .po, verify translation, remove #, fuzzy flag from approved entries.

Configurable Branding

Generated .pot/.po files use configurable author/email. Set environment variables:

export ODOO_I18N_COPYRIGHT="Your Company"
export ODOO_I18N_BUGS_EMAIL="you@example.com"

Detailed Reference (Memory Files)

For comprehensive patterns beyond this skill summary, the plugin includes memory files:

memories/translation_patterns.md -- Python _() / _lt() patterns, XML attribute translation, JS _t() patterns, .po file structure, email template translation
memories/rtl_patterns.md -- RTL activation, Bootstrap RTL, CSS logical properties, SCSS overrides, Flexbox in RTL, JS RTL detection, QWeb report RTL, common RTL fixes
memories/language_codes.md -- Language codes, date/time formats, number formats, currency display, Hijri calendar notes, timezone reference

Odoo I18N

File contents

Odoo i18n Skill

Critical Translation Rules

Workflow 1: Extract Translatable Strings

Usage

What Gets Extracted

Generated File Structure

Alternative: Odoo's Built-in Extractor

After Extraction

Workflow 2: Validate .po Files

Usage

What is Validated

Common Errors and Fixes

CI/CD Integration

Workflow 3: Find Missing Translations

Usage

Understanding the Report

Workflow: Fixing Missing Translations

Updating .po After Source Changes

Workflow 4: Export/Import via Odoo CLI

Exporting Translations

Importing Translations

Loading Languages

Module Update (Simplest Reload)

Odoo 17+ Specifics

Website Translations

Translation File Locations

Utility: Merge and Clean .po Files

Supported Languages Quick Reference

Odoo Version Differences

Common Issues

Configurable Branding

Detailed Reference (Memory Files)

Frequently asked questions

Odoo I18N

File contents

Odoo i18n Skill

Critical Translation Rules

Workflow 1: Extract Translatable Strings

Usage

What Gets Extracted

Generated File Structure

Alternative: Odoo's Built-in Extractor

After Extraction

Workflow 2: Validate .po Files

Usage

What is Validated

Common Errors and Fixes

CI/CD Integration

Workflow 3: Find Missing Translations

Usage

Understanding the Report

Workflow: Fixing Missing Translations

Updating .po After Source Changes

Workflow 4: Export/Import via Odoo CLI

Exporting Translations

Importing Translations

Loading Languages

Module Update (Simplest Reload)

Odoo 17+ Specifics

Website Translations

Translation File Locations

Utility: Merge and Clean .po Files

Supported Languages Quick Reference

Odoo Version Differences

Common Issues

Configurable Branding

Detailed Reference (Memory Files)

Related skills

Frequently asked questions

How do I install the Odoo I18N skill?

What does the Odoo I18N skill do?

Is Odoo I18N safe to use?

Which AI agents work with Odoo I18N?

Is Odoo I18N free to use?

Who published Odoo I18N?