[OSM-newbies] Name:Language validator problems

[Michael Heißmeier]

Hello Gavin,

> I am trying to tag some locations that are located in Japan with the English 
> name.
>
>
> The item has been tagged as follows
>
> name:= blah blah - this is written in Japanese letters
>
> I am trying to enter on another line;
>
> name:en= Blah blah - written in English
>
>
>
> The validator in JOSM gives me this error message on import;
>
> A name:* translation is missing.
>
> WTF.
>
> What is the correct way to label these items in English?
>
> Thanks
>

I just had a look at the source code of the validator. The rationale behind the 
test is that anything mentioned in the name tag should appear in a 
language-specific name tag as well. If name=<japanese characters> you should not 
only add some name:en but also that very same japanese characters as name:ja as 
well.

It does not appear as an error but is an informational message only. This way to 
handle localized names is not expressely stated in the wiki and I encountered it 
very frequently that name contains the name in the primary local language and 
name:* contain translations only.

I think you could safely ignore this kind of messages and continue tagging as 
you did.


Best Regards

Michael