Recently, SIL International launched an effort to translate the phrase "wash your hands" into hundreds of languages. Millions of people who speak lesser-known languages don't have a single resource on COVID-19 yet. The information gap is enormous – and lives are at stake.
"Wash your hands" isn't enough to combat this pandemic, but it's already more than some communities are hearing. On this guide page you can learn how to say the phrase in 523 different languages and counting. You can also download hand-washing posters to share in print or on social media.
The hand washing posters were generated using the scripts in the repo. The scripts can handle a variety of complex scripts which cover almost all languages. We're releasing these bits of code here so you can float your own localized hand washing information on the "how to wash" template image and help spread the word!
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Clone this repo.
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Create a file in poster_text for each language that you want to render on a poster. Some examples are included here which illustrate a variety of complex scripts and right-to-left scripts. Also, add a line to the poster_elements.csv file for each language.
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Render the text with pango:
$ ./generate_text.sh -
Generate the posters:
$ go build -o generate $ ./generate
Are you multilingual or do you have connections to local language communities. Spread the word about our "wash your hands" translations, share local language posters, and contribute your own translations on this Ethnologue guide page.
