Change language labels for static basemap tiles

Learn how to change language labels for static basemap tiles.

Change language labels for static basemap tiles using API key authentication

The static basemap tiles service (beta) provides a number of different styles that you can use in your MapLibre GL JS applications. Each style accepts a language parameter, which allows you to localize place labels. There are currently more than 5 different languages available.

In this tutorial, you use a <select> dropdown menu to toggle between a number of different language labels for the static basemap tiles.

Prerequisites

An ArcGIS Location Platform account.

Steps

Get the starter app

Select a type of authentication below and follow the steps to create a new application.

You can choose one of the following to create a new CodePen:

Option 1: Complete the Display a map tutorial; or,
Option 2: Start from the Display a map tutorial .

Set up authentication

Create developer credentials in your portal for the type of authentication you selected.

Create a new API key credential with the correct privileges to access the resources used in this tutorial.

Go to the Create an API key tutorial and create an API key with the following privilege(s):
- Privileges
  - Location services > Basemaps > Static basemap tiles (beta)
Copy the API key access token to your clipboard when prompted.

Set developer credentials

Use the API key or OAuth developer credentials so your application can access location services.

Update the accessToken variable to use your API key.

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    /* Use for API key authentication */
    const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN"
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In both the index.html and callback.html files, replace YOUR_CLIENT_ID and YOUR_REDIRECT_URL with the client ID and redirect URL of your OAuth credentials.

index.html
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    /* Use for user authentication */
    const session = await arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.beginOAuth2({
      clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
      redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
      portal: "https://www.arcgis.com/sharing/rest" // Your portal URL
    })

callback.html
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    arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.completeOAuth2({
      clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
      redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
      portal: "https://www.arcgis.com/sharing/rest" // Your portal URL
    })

Run the app and ensure you can sign in successfully.

If you are unable to sign in, make sure you have the correct redirect URL and port. This URL varies based on your application and typically takes the format of https://<server>[:port]/callback.html or http://my-arcgis-app:/auth. For example, if you are running an application on http://127.0.0.1:5500/, set http://127.0.0.1:5500/callback.html as your redirect URL in the index.html and callback.html file and your developer credential. They all have to match!

Add a language selector

Add a menu that allows users to change the display language of your map. MapLibre does not have a built-in selector widget, so you will create an HTML <select> element.

In the <body> element, add a select element that contains an enumeration for each language available through the static basemap tiles service.

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<body>
  <div id="map"></div>

  <div id="language-wrapper">
    <select id="language">
      <option value="en">English</option>
      <option value="nl">Dutch</option>
      <option value="da">Danish</option>
      <option value="fi">Finnish</option>
      <option value="fr">French</option>
      <option value="de">German</option>
      <option value="nb">Norwegian</option>
    </select>
  </div>

</body>

In the <head> tag, add CSS that will position the <select> menu element and its wrapper in the upper right corner and provide styling.

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    <style>
    body {
      margin: 0;
      padding: 0;
    }

    html,
    body,
    #map {
      height: 100%;
    }

    #language-wrapper {
      position: absolute;
      top: 20px;
      right: 20px;
      background: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);
    }

    #language {
      font-size: 16px;
      padding: 4px 8px;
    }

  </style>

Update the map's viewpoint

Change the map's center to [8.90, 47.14] and zoom level to 6. This will focus the map on Switzerland.

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    const map = new maplibregl.Map({
      container: 'map',

      zoom: 6,
      center: [8.90, 47.14], // Switzerland

    });

Set the basemap

When the page loads, initialize the app to display the static basemap tiles in French.

Change the basemapEnum to beta/arcgis/outdoor. This will be the default basemap.

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  <script>
    /* Use for API key authentication */
    const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";

    // or

    /* Use for user authentication */
    // const session = await arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.beginOAuth2({
    //   clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
    //   redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
    //   portal: "YOUR_PORTAL_URL" // Your portal URL
    // })

    // const accessToken = session.token;

    const basemapEnum = "beta/arcgis/outdoor";

    const map = new maplibregl.Map({
      container: 'map',

      zoom: 6,
      center: [8.90, 47.14], // Switzerland

    });

  </script>
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Create a function called url that takes a language as a parameter. This will create the URL of the static basemap tiles for that specified language.

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  <script>
    /* Use for API key authentication */
    const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";

    // or

    /* Use for user authentication */
    // const session = await arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.beginOAuth2({
    //   clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
    //   redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
    //   portal: "YOUR_PORTAL_URL" // Your portal URL
    // })

    // const accessToken = session.token;

    const basemapEnum = "beta/arcgis/outdoor";

    const baseUrl = `https://static-map-tiles-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/static-basemap-tiles-service`;
    const url = (language) => `${baseUrl}/${basemapEnum}/static/tile/{z}/{y}/{x}?token=${accessToken}&language=${language}`;

    const map = new maplibregl.Map({
      container: 'map',

      zoom: 6,
      center: [8.90, 47.14], // Switzerland

    });

  </script>
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Create a defaultLanguage variable for the basemap, which is fr for French.

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  <script>
    /* Use for API key authentication */
    const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";

    // or

    /* Use for user authentication */
    // const session = await arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.beginOAuth2({
    //   clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
    //   redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
    //   portal: "YOUR_PORTAL_URL" // Your portal URL
    // })

    // const accessToken = session.token;

    const basemapEnum = "beta/arcgis/outdoor";

    const baseUrl = `https://static-map-tiles-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/static-basemap-tiles-service`;
    const url = (language) => `${baseUrl}/${basemapEnum}/static/tile/{z}/{y}/{x}?token=${accessToken}&language=${language}`;

    const defaultLanguage = "fr";

    const map = new maplibregl.Map({
      container: 'map',

      zoom: 6,
      center: [8.90, 47.14], // Switzerland

    });

  </script>
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Set the style of the map to include a source with an id of raster-tiles and a layer with an id of simple-tiles. Pass defaultLanguage inside the tiles attribute as the default basemap language.

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  <script>
    /* Use for API key authentication */
    const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";

    // or

    /* Use for user authentication */
    // const session = await arcgisRest.ArcGISIdentityManager.beginOAuth2({
    //   clientId: "YOUR_CLIENT_ID", // Your client ID from OAuth credentials
    //   redirectUri: "YOUR_REDIRECT_URL", // The redirect URL registered in your OAuth credentials
    //   portal: "YOUR_PORTAL_URL" // Your portal URL
    // })

    // const accessToken = session.token;

    const basemapEnum = "beta/arcgis/outdoor";

    const baseUrl = `https://static-map-tiles-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/static-basemap-tiles-service`;
    const url = (language) => `${baseUrl}/${basemapEnum}/static/tile/{z}/{y}/{x}?token=${accessToken}&language=${language}`;

    const defaultLanguage = "fr";

    const map = new maplibregl.Map({
      container: 'map',

      style: {
        'version': 8,
        'sources': {
          'raster-tiles': {
            'type': 'raster',
            'tiles': [
              url(defaultLanguage)
            ],
            'tileSize': 512,
          },
        },
        'layers': [
          {
            'id': 'simple-tiles',
            'type': 'raster',
            'source': 'raster-tiles',
            'minzoom': 0,
            'maxzoom': 22
          },
        ]
      },

      zoom: 6,
      center: [8.90, 47.14], // Switzerland

    });

  </script>
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Run the code to ensure the map displays the default static basemap tiles in French and that the <select> element contains different language enumerations.

Add an event listener

Use an event listener to register a language change in the <select> element and to update the map.

Retrieve the select element by storing it in a languageSelectElement variable.

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    const languageSelectElement = document.querySelector("#language");

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Add an event listener to store the selected basemap.

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    const languageSelectElement = document.querySelector("#language");

    languageSelectElement.addEventListener("change", (e) => {
      const language = e.target.value;

    });
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Update the map's raster-tiles with the new language.

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    const languageSelectElement = document.querySelector("#language");

    languageSelectElement.addEventListener("change", (e) => {
      const language = e.target.value;

      const tilesUrl = url(language);
      map.getSource('raster-tiles').setTiles([tilesUrl]);

    });
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Update attribution

You will update the attribution text for basemap styles service from the previous tutorial to the attribution for static basemap tiles service. You retrieve the data attribution manually from the service URL and display it in the map's attribution control. You also prepend Powered by Esri in the attribution string.

Fetch the copyrightText from the service URL. Then, display it and prepend Powered by Esri string in the map's attribution control.

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    // Add Esri and data attribution
    // Learn more in https://esriurl.com/attribution
    fetch(`${baseUrl}/${basemapEnum}/static?token=${accessToken}`)
      .then(response => response.json())
      .then(data => {
        map._controls[0]._innerContainer.innerText += " | Powered by Esri | " + data.copyrightText;
     });
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Run the app

Run the app.

The map should be displayed in French and you should be able to use the controls to switch between language labels.

What's next?

Learn how to use additional ArcGIS location services in these tutorials:

Change the static basemap tiles style

Change the basemap style in a map using the static basemap tiles service (beta).