Can't change language in KDE apps

[woj.tek]

Hi,
Just the other day I decided to install OpenSUSE on my new-old computer for my father (it came with windows 10 which is just awful) and the requirement was quite simple: browser (firefox) and FreeCell.

Even though I set language as “Polish” in the installer, afterwards the whole system was in English. In KDE there wasn’t any option to change language as only “C” and “American English” was available. After a bit of searching I installed -locale- packages for everything plasma (and everything that had anything related to translation/localisation) and afterwards most of the OS was in Polish (not all parts of Plasma though but from what I saw in their translation portal it doesn’t have 100% polish translation but I’ll help with that later on).

However - I couldn’t select Polish in on of the KDE apps (KPatience, KMines) - they only had “American english” selected and nothing else available.

I tried setting locale via localectl but it didn’t help.

Interestingly enough, when I installed Aisleriot from suse repositories it was in english but when I reinstalled it from flathub it switched to polish (on it’s own).

Any hints how can I get KDE apps/system to be in Polish?

Screenshot_20251025_201155|407x233

Screenshot_20251025_201248|587x500

[woj.tek]

Rest of the links due to new accounts limitations:

Screenshot_20251025_201319|310x499

Screenshot_20251025_201346|469x192

[dcurtisfra]

@woj.tek:

First, welcome to the openSUSE Forums.

---

Can you please post the output of the CLI “Locale” commands.

• For example, here on a German Language Leap 16.0 system:

 > localectl 
System Locale: LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
    VC Keymap: de-nodeadkeys
   X11 Layout: de
    X11 Model: cymotionlinux
  X11 Variant: nodeadkeys
  X11 Options: terminate:ctrl_alt_bksp
 > 
 > locale
LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
LC_CTYPE="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_NUMERIC="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_TIME="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_COLLATE="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_MONETARY="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_MESSAGES="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_PAPER="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_NAME="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_ADDRESS="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_TELEPHONE="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_MEASUREMENT="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_IDENTIFICATION="de_DE.UTF-8"
LC_ALL=
 >

For Polish systems, “locale --all-locales” suggests that “pl_PL.utf8” might be an appropriate value.

---

On this Leap 16.0 system:

 > rpm --query --whatprovides /usr/share/i18n/locales/pl_PL 
glibc-i18ndata-2.40-160000.2.2.noarch
 >

[woj.tek]

@dcurtisfra

Can you please post the output of the CLI “Locale” commands.

Sorry, but only posted the “status” in Screenshot_20251025_201155 image. However the rest of the command was similar and it had pl_PL.UTF-8 everywher (except for LC_ALL).

I also set it in (if memory serves me right): /etc/default/locale and used localectl set-locale

Sadly, after hours of trying to get this working I ended up trying other distro and everything JustWorked

Alas: it’s highly confusing that almost all guides point to “just use YaST” while it’s gone from Leap 16

[deano_ferrari]

@woj.tek

Alas: it’s highly confusing that almost all guides point to “just use YaST” while it’s gone from Leap 16

From a desktop POV, YaST not needed. The System Settings > Region and Language utility is relevant here. You’d first need to install the language support packages for both KDE and KMines:

sudo zypper install glibc-i18ndata
sudo zypper install libKF6I18n6-lang plasma6-*-lang
sudo zypper install kmines-lang

[arvidjaar]

@deano_ferrari

glibc-i18ndata

Why? It most certainly is not needed. This package contains the sources from which individual locale data is built. And to my best knowledge openSUSE still does not enable the KDE ability to generate locale on the fly.

[deano_ferrari]

Just being careful really…in case some non-KDE apps, scripts, or other system tools require glibc locales to provide pl_PL.UTF-8 eg things like date/time formatting, number formats, or console apps that might otherwise remain in English. I’m open to correction on that.

[arvidjaar]

@deano_ferrari

in case some non-KDE apps, scripts, or other system tools require glibc locales to provide pl_PL.UTF-8

andrei@leap160:~> rpm -qf /usr/lib/locale/pl_PL.utf8
glibc-locale-2.40-160000.2.2.x86_64
andrei@leap160:~> LANG=pl_PL.UTF-8 date
wto, 28 paź 2025, 09:47:14 MSK
andrei@leap160:~>

There is internal mapping between utf8 and UTF-8.

@woj.tek

In KDE there wasn’t any option to change language as only “C” and “American English” was available.

KDE control panel is confusing. The “language” there refers to the translations and it only looks at the available translations of one specific KDE component.

Set en_au as default language in Tumbleweed

KDE only offers those languages for which translations are available (on openSUSE it means the package plasma6-workspace-lang is installed). But there is no separate translation for en_AU which means it will not be offered in “Add Language” anyway. It is possible to select it for the individual locale categories though.

KDE “Region & Language” shows options that don’t work - English / Applications - openSUSE Forums