What is DETECTLANGUAGE in Google Sheets?
DETECTLANGUAGE in Google Sheets identifies the language of a given string. It is very useful when working with multilingual datasets, survey responses with different languages, or product descriptions where the input language is not known in advance. The function returns a language code (such as “en” for English, “ja” for Japanese), which can then be used for translation, filtering, or categorization.
For example, if cell A1 contains the text “Bonjour le monde”, you can use the following formula:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A1)
This formula will return “fr”, indicating that the text is in French. Similarly, if A1 contains “こんにちは”, the result will be “ja” for Japanese. This makes it easy to automatically detect and manage text across multiple languages in your spreadsheet.
Key Takeaways
- The DETECTLANGUAGE function in Google Sheets identifies the language of a given text string and returns its language code.
- Its syntax is as follows: =DETECTLANGUAGE(text)
- The text argument can be a cell reference or a typed string that you want to analyze.
- It is commonly used to sort, filter, or manage multilingual datasets and can be combined with other functions like IF or VLOOKUP for automated workflows.
- Ensure that the text input is sufficiently long and clear, as very short phrases or mixed-language text may produce inaccurate results.
Syntax
The syntax of the DETECTLANGUAGE function in Google Sheets is as follows:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(text_or_range)
Let us look at the argument:
- text_or_range: The text string or the cell reference containing the text you want to identify.
If text_or_range is specified as a range, it must be a one-dimensional column range.
Unlike financial functions, DETECTLANGUAGE has only one argument. It analyzes the provided text and returns a language code (such as “en”, “es”, “fr”, etc.) according to Google’s language recognition system.
How to Use DETECTLANGUAGE Function in Google Sheets?
The DETECTLANGUAGE function is a convenient tool that automatically identifies the language of text in a cell. It is especially useful when working with multilingual data such as product descriptions, customer feedback, or survey responses. Instead of manually checking each entry, DETECTLANGUAGE can return the appropriate language code for the language, making sorting and categorization easier.
This function can be used in two ways:
- By manually typing DETECTLANGUAGE
- By selecting it from the Google Sheets menu
Using the DETECTLANGUAGE Function Manually
Let’s walk through an example to see how DETECTLANGUAGE works step by step when we enter the function manually.
Suppose we have a dataset with two different languages, as shown below.
We want Google Sheets to automatically detect which language each sentence is written in.
Step 1: Open a new sheet and enter the given text in column A.
Step 2: In cell B2, start typing the formula:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(
Step 3: Provide the text argument inside the parentheses. For the first row, enter:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A2)
Step 4: Press Enter. The result will be “en”, which is the code for English.
Step 5: Repeat the same formula in cell B3:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A3)
This time, the result will be “fr”, which is the code for French.
Using DETECTLANGUAGE From the Menu
If you prefer to insert the function through the menu:
- Click on any empty cell.
- Go to the top menu → Insert -> Function -> Google -> DetectLanguage (under text functions).
- Select the cell containing the text (e.g., A1).
- Press Enter to see the result.
Examples
Let us look at different real-time scenarios where we can use DETECTLANGUAGE in Google Sheets.
Example #1
A company collects customer feedback from different regions. Some responses are in English, while others are in French. The company wants to automatically detect which language each response is written in. We can easily do this using DETECTLANGUAGE in Google Sheets.
Step 1: Open a sheet and enter the following feedback details in column A.
Step 2: In column B, enter the formula for each row:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A2). Press Enter.
Step 3: For the text in A2, the function returns “en”, the code for English. Similarly drag the formula for the other two text values as well.
For A3, the function returns “fr”, the code for French, for A4, it is “rt”, the code for Russian.
This allows the company to quickly sort feedback by language. Using DETECTLANGUAGE saves time in multilingual environments by automatically identifying the text language. This is very useful in customer service, surveys, and international business procedures.
Example #2 – Using DETECTLANGUAGE with IF Function
A company runs a customer satisfaction survey and receives responses in different languages. The team wants to not only detect the language of each response but also automatically reply “¡Gracias por tus comentarios!” (Thank you for your feedback) whenever the response is in Spanish. Let us look at how to implement this using DETECTLANGUAGE.
Step 1: Open a sheet and enter the following survey responses in column A.
Step 2: We use the DETECTLANGUAGE formula to find the language:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A2). However, this step isn’t enough. In column B, use an IF formula to return a thank-you message in Spanish only if the detected language is “es” (Spanish):
=IF(DETECTLANGUAGE(A2)=”es”,”¡Gracias por tus comentarios!”,”Thanks”)
Step 3: Press Enter and drag the formula down for all rows.
For A2 and A3, the function will detect “es” and display the thank-you message.
For A4, the result will be “en”, so no Spanish reply will appear.
Combining DETECTLANGUAGE with IF makes it possible to personalize responses based on language. This is especially useful for multilingual surveys, customer support, and marketing automation.
Example #3 – Using DETECTLANGUAGE with VLOOKUP Function
A travel agency receives customer queries in English and Portuguese. They want to detect the language and send a quick greeting using a lookup table.
Step 1: Create a lookup table of language codes and greetings in Columns E and F.
E2: en, F2: Hello!
E3: pt, F3: Olá!
Step 2: Enter customer queries in column A:
We enter the details as shown below.
Step 3: In column B, detect the language with:
=DETECTLANGUAGE(A2)
Copy down for all rows.
Step 4: In column C, use VLOOKUP to match the detected code with the greeting:
=VLOOKUP(B2, E1:F2, 2, TRUE)
Here,
- B2 – The value to look up –
- E1:F2 – The range or table where the formula searches for the lookup value.
- 2 – The column number in the range from which to return the result (2nd column, F).
- TRUE – Specifies an approximate match;
This helps the agency instantly respond with the right greeting in English or Portuguese, saving time and improving customer experience.
Copy the formulas =VLOOKUP(B3, E1:F2, 2, TRUE) and =VLOOKUP(B4, E1:F2, 2, TRUE) in cells C3 and C4, respectively.
Important Things to Note
If the range specified contains multiple languages, the first text found will be evaluated.
For finding the language, we use DETECTLANGUAGE. To translate text from one language into another, we use GOOGLETRANSLATE.
Always enclose the manual text input within quotation marks.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. It is used in customer support to manage emails or messages by detecting the language which can help route queries to the right support agents.
2. It is used in data analysis for analyzing survey responses to quickly identify language patterns in their datasets.
3. It helps in content categorization as many managers deal with articles in multiple languages. This helps them co-ordinate content efficiently.
Some of the issues include the following:
1. Use of mixed language: If a text string contains multiple languages, sometimes DETECTLANGUAGE cannot accurately detect it. Consider splitting the text or focusing on the dominant language. Even short phrases and words common across multiple languages can be misinterpreted.
2. For example, a very short English word like “No” might be detected as Norwegian (“no”) instead of English (“en”).
3. Special characters or formatting: Text with special characters or formatting issues might confuse the function. Try cleaning up the text before applying the function.
4. Using languages not supported by Google results in unexpected results.
DETECTLANGUAGE relies on standard vocabulary and character patterns to identify a language. Hence, sometimes abbreviations, or emojis may give unexpected results. Similarly, texts with many emojis or mixed symbols could return an incorrect language code. It’s best to use DETECTLANGUAGE with complete, standard text for more reliable results.
Download Template
This article must help understand DETECTLANGUAGE Function in Google Sheets with its formulas and examples. You can download the template here to use it instantly.
Recommended Articles
Guide to What is DETECTLANGUAGE Function in Google Sheets. We learn how to use DETECTLANGUAGE function in google sheets with its syntax and examples. You can learn more from the following articles. –
Leave a Reply