In GNOME Calendar the month names are displayed in two different languages (English and German). See screenshot: main window (German) and popup to create a new event (English).
I expected the UI to be in English (Language=English). Maybe there is a mixup with the date format, which should be the one used in Switzerland (Format=Switzerland). See screenshot:
But it’s literally format (i.e. locale) the one controlling it?
It’s not a bug, they chose Swiss locale and they got date in the language they chose (German, Switzerland). “January 1” isn’t in German coz that’s not being provided by locale, but the app itself. You can test it yourself on your system by choosing, e.g. Polish format. You will get date in Polish.
Yes, relative to locale, it’s not a bug (because that’s how it was designed). However, if we conceive a format as simply being, for example, for dates, the order of terms - so something that is independent of language, yes. Example: August 24, 2025 vs. 24 August 2025.
But it’s not how it works. Settings’ “format” is simply a bunch of locales that don’t set UI’s language. You still need to choose a matching locale if you want it to use your preferred language.
When you choose, e.g. Polish format, you essentially choose Polish locales related to date, units, currency etc. And since it’s Polish locales, it’s in Polish. If you want it to be in English, you need to choose an English format that corresponds with your preferences, e.g. I use British format, since it’s closer to Polish (yes, i use my system in English).
Here is an alternative: Yes, relative to locale, it’s not a bug (because that’s how it was designed). However, it is surprising that it is not considered as a bug, because we can conceive a format as simply being, for example, for dates, the order of terms - so something that is independent of language. Example: August 24, 2025 vs. 24 August 2025.
The format should be language-independent, so that users can choose whether dates should be translated or not in the selected language.
I need to be real with you, this reads exactly the same to me. But at least we understand each other now, so oh well.
I could argue a bit here, but this thread was about something else. I just told OP why they see what they see and pointed at misconfiguration. It’s just how we roll with locales on linux and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
Thank you for the replies. I anticipated that the suggestion would be to switch the format and already tested some settings. Looks like “Ireland” is the most “accurate” for me. It’s not perfect, but good enough.
I can live with this configuration - but still think it’s rather strange … I guess, this case was overlooked when this locale things were designed. Anyway, thanks again.
