zhconv

1.4.3 verified Fri May 01 auth: no python

A simple implementation of Simplified-Traditional Chinese conversion. Supports zh-Hans, zh-Hant, and regional variants like zh-tw, zh-cn, etc. Based on MediaWiki conversion tables. Current version: 1.4.3. Release cadence is low; maintained as needed.

pip install zhconv

Common errors

error ImportError: cannot import name 'convert' from 'zhconv' ↓

cause Using import zhconv and then zhconv.convert, but the function is not a module-level attribute when imported as a module.

fix

Use 'from zhconv import convert' instead of 'import zhconv'.

error TypeError: convert() missing 1 required positional argument: 'target' ↓

cause Calling convert() without providing the target variant string.

fix

Provide target variant: convert('text', 'zh-tw')

Warnings

gotcha The library does not auto-detect the source variant; you must specify the target variant. If you want to detect the source, use other libraries like opencc or langid. ↓

fix Always specify target variant explicitly, e.g., 'zh-cn' when converting to simplified Chinese.

gotcha Conversion is one-way per call; to convert 'back' you need to call convert again with the opposite target. The library does not maintain state. ↓

fix Call convert(text, 'zh-cn') then convert(result, 'zh-tw') for bidirectional conversion.

Imports

convert
wrong
```
import zhconv
```
correct
```
from zhconv import convert
```
Direct module import does not expose convert; must import the function explicitly.

Quickstart

Basic usage: convert(text, target_variant). Variants include 'zh-hans', 'zh-hant', 'zh-cn', 'zh-tw', 'zh-hk', 'zh-sg', 'zh-mo', etc.

from zhconv import convert

# Convert simplified Chinese to traditional
result = convert('我爱编程', 'zh-tw')
print(result)  # 我愛編程

# Convert traditional to simplified
result2 = convert('我愛編程', 'zh-cn')
print(result2)  # 我爱编程