msgconv

msgconv [OPTION]... [INPUTFILE]
msgconv [OPTION]... --output-file=FILE [INPUTFILE]

--output-file=FILE, -o FILE
    Write converted output to FILE instead of standard output.

--input-file=FILE, -i FILE
    Read input from FILE instead of standard input.

--to-code=ENCODING
    Convert messages to the specified ENCODING (e.g., UTF-8, ISO-8859-1).

--from-code=ENCODING
    Specify the original ENCODING of messages if it cannot be detected from the input file's header.

--no-fallback
    Do not try to use the original string if conversion fails, resulting in empty translated strings for untranslatable messages.

--strict
    Abort conversion if a character cannot be represented in the target encoding, instead of using substitute characters.

--force-po
    Always output a PO file, even if the input was a MO file (useful for reverse conversion from compiled MO files).

--verbose, -v
    Display detailed progress messages during conversion.

--color
    Colorize warning and error messages for better readability.

--indent
    Indent the output PO file for improved human readability.

--version
    Display version information and exit.

--help
    Display a help message and exit.

msgconv is a utility from the GNU gettext suite, designed to convert message catalogs (typically .po files) from one character encoding to another. This is essential for internationalization projects that handle text in various languages using different encodings, ensuring compatibility and proper display.

It reads message catalogs from an input file or standard input, performs the character set conversion using the iconv library, and writes the converted output to a specified file or standard output. It's particularly useful when consolidating or deploying translations where target systems or workflows require specific encodings, such as transforming an ISO-8859-1 PO file to UTF-8.

Character encoding conversion performed by msgconv relies heavily on the underlying iconv library. If iconv does not support a particular source or target encoding, or if a character cannot be mapped between them, msgconv might fail or produce substitute characters depending on the --strict and --no-fallback options. Ensure your system's iconv library is robust and supports the necessary character sets for your localization needs.

msgconv is an integral part of the GNU gettext localization framework, which originated in the early 1990s as a Free Software Foundation project. Its development has paralleled the evolution of internationalization best practices in Unix-like systems, enabling developers to easily adapt software for various languages and cultural conventions by handling string externalization and character set conversions.

gettext(1), xgettext(1), msgfmt(1), msgmerge(1), msginit(1), iconv(1)