Enable keyboard layouts for different languages

Applies to:Microsoft Access 2010,Excel 2010,InfoPath 2010,OneNote 2010,Outlook 2010,PowerPoint 2010,Project 2010,Publisher 2010,Visio 2010,Word 2010,Excel 2007,InfoPath 2007,OneNote 2007,Outlook 2007,PowerPoint 2007,Project 2007,Publisher 2007,Visio 2007,Word 2007

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Your keyboard layout, also called the "keyboard language" or "input language", controls which characters appear on the screen when you press the keys on your keyboard. The layouts enable you to type all the characters for the language, including diacritical marks such as the umlaut (ä) in German and the tilde (ñ) in Spanish.

After you enable a language's keyboard layout, you can easily switch between keyboard languages with the Language bar to type in a different language such as Arabic, Hindi, Russian, or Spanish. For more information about using the Language bar, seeSwitch between different languages using the Language bar.

TIP Do you just want to enter a few foreign characters? You can insert symbols or characters from other languages by typing ASCII character codes (seeASCII Character Codes), or with thecharacter map, a virtual keyboard.

What do you want to do?

  • Enable a keyboard layout
  • Change the keyboard language with the Language bar
  • Enable system support for East Asian, Southeast Asian, Indic, and right-to-left languages

Enable a keyboard layout

Changing the keyboard language enables you to type the characters that are used in that language.

IMPORTANT To check for spelling, grammar, or hyphenation errors, the proofing tools for the language that you are typing in must be enabled and alanguage packorlanguage interface packmay be required. For more information, seeCheck spelling and grammar in another language.

In Windows 7

In Windows Vista

In Windows XP

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Change the keyboard language with the Language bar

If you enabled the keyboard layouts for all the languages that you need and you are ready to type text in another language, you can change the keyboard with theLanguage barbefore you start typing. For more information about using theLanguage bar, or if you don't see the Language bar on your desktop or taskbar and need to enable it, seeSwitch between different languages using the Language bar.

  1. Open your document and place the cursor in the document where you want to start to type text in a different language.
  2. Click the language iconon the Language bar, and then click the language that you want to use.

Keyboard shortcutTo switch between keyboard layouts, press ALT+SHIFT.

NOTE Theicon is an example, and it shows when English is the language of the active keyboard layout. The actual icon shown on your computer depends on the language of the active keyboard layout.

If you have set up more than one keyboard layout for a single language, you can switch between layouts by clicking the keyboard layout indicator
on the Language bar, and then clicking the keyboard layout that you want to use. The name on the indicator changes to reflect the active keyboard layout.

  1. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to switch between different languages.

SEE A KEYBOARD IN YOUR SELECTED LANGUAGE

If you’re using a physical keyboard in one language, such as English, but have changed your keyboard layout to a different language, such as Russian, you can see which keys on your keyboard will type what characters on your screen by opening the onscreen keyboard.

To open the onscreen keyboard, do the following:

  1. ClickStart.
  2. Type Onscreen Keyboard into theSearch programs and filesbox.
  3. ClickTurn On-Screen Keyboard on or off.
  4. In theEase of Access Center, clickStart On-Screen Keyboard.
  5. If necessary, change your keyboard language using the language bar to see the keyboard in that language.

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Enable system support for East Asian, Southeast Asian, Indic, and right-to-left languages

IN WINDOWS 7 AND WINDOWS VISTA

Windows 7 and Windows Vista include all the necessary files to support East Asian, Southeast Asian, Indic, and right-to-left languages. Just enable the keyboard orInput Method Editor (IME)for the language that you want by following the steps in theEnable a keyboard layoutsection.

IN WINDOWS XP

When working with East Asian, Southeast Asian, Indic, and right-to-left languages in Windows XP, some additional setup may be required depending on your operating system. For more information, seeEnabling International Support in WindowsorRight-to-left language features.

  1. To install the support files for your language on your computer, follow the instructions inSet up Windows XP for multiple languages.
  2. Complete the steps inEnable a keyboard layout in Windows XP.

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