When importing TMX files for different language pairs (source English US) in our Translation Memory we noticed that while for TMX files containing English > pt-BR, English > fr-FR, English > Spanish (Castillian), or English > it-IT, the order of the languages display correctly: English on the top and the target language below, as displayed in this screenshot:



However, when we import a tmx file for German (de-DE) as target language, the source/target setup seems to be reversed, instead of English > de-DE, it shows de-DE > English:



Why is this happening and does it mean that German is imported as the source language, instead of English?

 

When importing a TMX file into a TM, WorldServer displays the fields corresponding to each locale of the language pair in alphabetical order and based on the respective language codes.

That is why when importing a TMX with - for example - source "EN-US" (English United States) and target "PT-BR" (Portuguese Brazil), English (United States) will be displayed first. Alphabetically, "E" comes before "P".

Following the same logic, when importing a TMX with source "EN-US" and target "DE-DE", the German (DE-DE) language field will be displayed first.

This has no impact whatsoever on which language will be considered the source and which one target language after the import. This is set in the TMX file itself and will display correctly after the import.