# JPKCom Simple Lang — Guide & Tips
> Display individual WordPress pages in a different language on a per-post basis with JPKCom Simple Lang — installation, language selection, hreflang, Oxygen conditions and practical tips.
Source: https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/guides/jpkcom-simple-lang/
JPKCom Simple Lang is a lightweight solution for displaying individual pages or posts in a language other than your site's default. Rather than a full multilingual plugin, it does exactly one job: overriding the WordPress locale **per post** in the frontend — including the `` attribute, hreflang tags and Oxygen Builder conditions.
## Guide
### Requirements
- WordPress **6.9** or newer
- PHP **8.3** or newer (with strict typing)
- At least one additional language pack installed (optional but recommended)
- Multisite is supported (the plugin is network-enabled)
### Installation
1. Download the latest release ZIP from the [GitHub Releases page](https://github.com/JPKCom/jpkcom-simple-lang/releases).
2. In your admin panel: **Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin**, choose the ZIP, **Install Now**, then **Activate**.
Alternatively upload the `jpkcom-simple-lang` folder via FTP to `/wp-content/plugins/`, or clone it for development:
```bash
cd /path/to/wordpress/wp-content/plugins/
git clone https://github.com/JPKCom/jpkcom-simple-lang.git
```
### Install language packs
The selection dropdown only shows **installed** languages. Add more like this:
1. Go to **Settings → General** and open the **Site Language** dropdown.
2. Select the language you want (e.g. "Deutsch", "Français") and click **Save Changes** — WordPress downloads the language pack automatically (5–10 seconds).
3. Optionally switch the default language back afterwards; the installed pack stays available.
An overview of all 200+ languages is available at [translate.wordpress.org](https://translate.wordpress.org/).
### Usage
1. **Enable post types** (optional): Under **Settings → Simple Lang** you decide which post types get a language selector. Posts and Pages are enabled by default.
2. **Select a language**: When editing a post, a **Frontend Language Select** dropdown appears in the sidebar. Choose an installed language or keep the default.
3. **Link translations** (optional): Use the **Translation Links** meta box to connect related posts in different languages. Links are bidirectional — link Post A to B and both link back; an entire translation group is wired together automatically.
4. **In the frontend**: On view, WordPress switches to the selected language automatically. Interface strings (core, theme, plugins), the `lang` attribute and SEO meta tags (`og:locale`) are translated; linked posts emit `` tags in the ``.
> **Important:** Simple Lang does **not** translate your content. Titles, post body, custom fields and media captions stay exactly as you write them — writing content in the target language is up to you.
## Tips & Tricks
- **Pick the right tool:** Simple Lang targets occasional pages in a secondary language (landing pages, docs, legal pages, client presentations). If you need full site translations, language switchers or translation workflows, WPML or Polylang are the better fit.
- **Hreflang with no configuration:** Linked, **published** posts get self-referencing hreflang tags, sorted deterministically by language code and emitted early in the `` (before most SEO plugins). `x-default` is **not** included currently.
- **Locale format:** Both short (`ar`) and full locales (`de_DE`) are accepted — relevant for languages without a country code.
- **Oxygen Builder conditions:** With Oxygen installed, three conditions are available: "Post Language Is" (a specific language), "Post Has Custom Language" (any custom language set) and "Post Uses Default Language" (site default). Use them to show or hide elements per language.
- **Helper functions for developers:** `jpkcom_simplelang_get_post_language( $post_id )` returns the set locale (or `null`), `jpkcom_simplelang_get_current_language()` the active frontend language, and `jpkcom_simplelang_get_language_code( 'de_DE' )` the bare language code (`de`) for the `lang` attribute.
- **Template overrides:** Plugin files can be overridden in the child theme (`{child-theme}/jpkcom-simple-lang/{file}`), parent theme or in MU plugins (`{WPMU_PLUGIN_DIR}/jpkcom-simple-lang-overrides/{file}`). Extend the search paths via the `jpkcom_simplelang_file_paths` filter.
- **REST API & data:** The language is stored as post meta under the key `_jpkcom_simplelang_language` and is reachable via the REST API when configured. There is no bulk assignment — use `update_post_meta()` with the same key for that.
- **Deactivation is safe:** After disabling, posts simply display in the default language; the meta data remains and applies immediately if you reactivate.
- **Performance:** One meta query per post, a single locale switch per request, no extra tables, no frontend JS/CSS.
- **Updates & security:** The plugin updates securely via GitHub with SHA256 checksum verification; a preferred match against the manifest's `download_url` prevents a tampered manifest from bypassing the checksum gate.
## Further reading
- Source code on GitHub:
- API documentation (PHPDoc):
- [Oxygen Builder](https://oxygenbuilder.com/)
- [All available WordPress languages](https://translate.wordpress.org/)
- [This project's changelog](https://www.jpkc.com/db/en/changelog/jpkcom-simple-lang/)