Multilingualism is a frequent consideration for museum accessibility, one that can easily be overlooked. This article seeks to assess the museum field's translation practices, as well as the challenges and benefits that come along with incorporating other languages. Museums have already come a long way in recognizing the need for and importance of multiple languages in cultural centers. Museum translation has proved beneficial by reaching underserved community groups, promoting intergenerational learning, and producing better exhibits. Unfortunately, issues of cost, dialect, and consistent information across languages make multilingualism a difficult process for many museums. By reviewing standard practices and the actual implementation of multilingualism in museums, through both translation and programming, this research allows museum professionals to evaluate their own processes and struggles with translation, thereby stimulating discussion and positive change in the field. Relevant case studies also provide real world examples of overcoming obstacles and successfully implementing non-English languages into museums.
Reagan Smith (2026) studied this question.