Change which language you use

You can use your desktop and applications in any of dozens of languages, provided you have the proper language packs installed on your computer.

  1. Open the Activities overview and start typing Region & Language.

  2. Click on Region & Language to open the panel.

  3. Click Language.

  4. Select your desired region and language. If your region and language are not listed, click … at the bottom of the list to select from all available regions and languages.

  5. Click Select to save.

  6. Your session needs to be restarted for changes to take effect. Either click Restart…, or manually log back in later.

Some translations may be incomplete, and certain applications may not support your language at all. Any untranslated text will appear in the language in which the software was originally developed, usually American English.

There are some special folders in your home folder where applications can store things like music, pictures, and documents. These folders use standard names according to your language. When you log back in, you will be asked if you want to rename these folders to the standard names for your selected language. If you plan to use the new language all the time, you should update the folder names.

If there are multiple user accounts on your system, there is a separate instance of the Region & Language panel for the login screen. Click the Login Screen button at the top right to toggle between the two instances.