There are a few potential reasons why you may be receiving emails from LinkedIn in Chinese rather than your default language. LinkedIn is a global platform with users from all around the world, so sometimes there can be glitches that cause the language settings to switch. Here are some of the most common causes and fixes for receiving LinkedIn emails in Chinese:
You have your LinkedIn account language set to Chinese
The most straightforward reason your LinkedIn emails are in Chinese is because you have your LinkedIn account language set to Chinese rather than your native language. Here’s how to change it:
- Log into your LinkedIn account on the website (not the mobile app)
- Click on your profile image in the top right corner
- Select “Settings & Privacy” from the dropdown menu
- On the left sidebar, click “Language” under the “Preferences” section
- Under “Site language,” select your preferred language from the dropdown menu
- Scroll down and click “Save changes”
This will update your LinkedIn site language as well as the language used for any communications from LinkedIn. Allow some time for the changes to take effect, and your emails should revert to your native language.
You changed your location to China
LinkedIn will sometimes automatically switch the language in your account based on the location you have set in your profile. If you recently updated your location to China for any reason, this could trigger LinkedIn to switch your account language to Chinese.
To fix this:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile
- In the “Contact info” section, click “Edit contact info”
- Update your location back to your home country
- Click “Save”
LinkedIn should then switch your language setting back to match your updated location. Give it some time to adjust, and your emails should go back to your native language.
You changed your time zone
Similar to location, if you update your time zone to a Chinese time zone, LinkedIn may automatically change your language settings. To resolve this:
- Go to your profile and click “Edit public profile & URL”
- Scroll down and click “Edit” next to the “Time zone” field
- Select your actual time zone
- Click “Save changes”
Reverting your time zone should cause LinkedIn to switch your language back. Wait for the changes to fully apply, and you should see your emails in your native language again.
Your IP address suggests you are in China
If you are accessing LinkedIn while traveling in China or through a China-based VPN or proxy server, LinkedIn may detect your IP address originating from China and automatically switch your account language.
To prevent this, use a VPN or proxy service that assigns you an IP address from your home country rather than China. You can also manually change your account language back to your native tongue. LinkedIn should maintain that language setting as long as you don’t access the site from a Chinese IP address again.
Your browser language is set to Chinese
If you use a browser that allows setting a default language, and you have yours set to Chinese, some sites including LinkedIn may automatically display in Chinese based on that browser language setting.
To fix this, change your browser’s default language to match your native tongue. For example:
- In Chrome, go to Settings > Advanced > Language and change your language preference.
- In Firefox, go to Options > General > Language and choose your desired language.
- In Safari, go to Preferences > General and change your Preferred Languages.
Once you adjust your browser language, websites like LinkedIn should start displaying in your chosen language again.
You clicked on a Chinese ad or page
Sometimes interacting with a specific piece of Chinese content on LinkedIn, like clicking an ad or a post that’s in Chinese, can cause LinkedIn to switch your account language temporarily.
To reverse this, simply change your account language back to your native tongue in your Language settings. Avoid clicking on Chinese content again, and LinkedIn should maintain your language preference going forward.
It’s a temporary glitch
In rare cases, this can simply be a temporary glitch where LinkedIn mistakenly sends out a batch of Chinese emails. Reach out to LinkedIn customer support to report the issue if the problem persists. Otherwise, it may resolve on its own within a few days.
You can also log out and back into your account to force LinkedIn to reload your language settings.
How to Prevent LinkedIn Emails in Chinese
To avoid LinkedIn emails appearing in Chinese again, here are some helpful tips:
- Double check your LinkedIn language settings and confirm your native language is selected.
- Make sure your LinkedIn profile location and time zone match your actual location.
- Avoid accessing LinkedIn from a Chinese IP address like a VPN.
- Set your browser language to match your native tongue.
- Be cautious about clicking on Chinese content which could temporarily change the language.
- If the issue persists, contact LinkedIn support to investigate.
Following these best practices should prevent your LinkedIn emails from inadvertently switching to Chinese again in most cases.
How to Switch LinkedIn Language Back to Native Tongue
If you find your LinkedIn emails in Chinese again, here are the steps to change it back:
- Log into LinkedIn on the desktop website
- Click your profile picture and select “Settings & Privacy”
- Choose “Language” from the left sidebar
- Under “Site Language” pick your native language
- Scroll down and click “Save Changes”
This will update your LinkedIn language settings and apply it to emails and communications going forward. Give it some time to take effect across LinkedIn’s systems. Continue monitoring your emails, and they should revert to your native language within a few days at most.
You can also try logging out and back into LinkedIn to force a language refresh. If neither approach works, reach out to their customer support for additional help switching your language back.
Translation Options for LinkedIn Chinese Emails
If you need to access the content of the Chinese LinkedIn emails right away, here are some translation options:
Copy and paste into Google Translate
An easy option is to simply copy and paste the Chinese email text into Google Translate. Here’s how:
- Open the Chinese LinkedIn email
- Copy all the text in the email
- Go to translate.google.com
- Click the text box on the left side
- Paste the copied text
- Google Translate will detect Chinese and translate to your language
While not a perfect translation, this should allow you to grasp the overall meaning so you can get access to the key information.
Use the Google Translate app
Alternatively, open the Google Translate app on your phone and use the instant camera translation feature:
- Open the Chinese LinkedIn email on your computer
- Open the Google Translate app on your phone
- Select Chinese as the source language
- Select your language as the target
- Tap the camera icon in Google Translate
- Hover your phone camera over the LinkedIn email text
- Google Translate will instantly recognize and translate the Chinese to your language
This optical character recognition works quickly to translate Chinese text in real-time.
Try another translation app
Apps like iTranslate, SayHi Translate, and Microsoft Translator all offer Chinese translation features. Download one of these apps, and you should be able to use the camera feature to scan and translate your LinkedIn emails from Chinese.
Ask a Chinese-speaking friend
If all else fails, reach out to a Chinese-speaking connection and ask them to translate the email for you. This will provide the most accurate translation, as long as you’re comfortable sharing the email content.
Contact LinkedIn Support for Additional Help
If you continue receiving LinkedIn emails in Chinese after trying the troubleshooting steps above, reach out to LinkedIn customer support for additional assistance fixing the language issue:
- From LinkedIn’s website, click on your profile picture and select “Help”
- On the Help page, select “Contact us” in the top right
- Choose the issue type as “Account settings” and subtopic as “Changing language settings”
- Explain your situation and frustration in receiving Chinese emails
- Request help resolving the problem and reverting to your native language
LinkedIn support can look into your account settings, review your recent access patterns, confirm your language preferences are properly set, and potentially identify any glitches causing the Chinese emails. If there is an underlying technical issue, they have the best ability to resolve it.
Continuing to engage with support until the problem is fixed is the best approach if you find the Chinese emails persist over time.
Conclusion
Receiving LinkedIn emails in Chinese can be confusing and inconvenient, but this issue can usually be resolved with a few easy troubleshooting steps. In most cases, the cause is accidentally changing your account language or location settings, which can be remedied in your profile preferences. Preventative best practices like avoiding Chinese VPNs and verifying browser language can help stop the problem altogether. Translation apps provide a good backup option if you need to read Chinese email content quickly. And for ongoing issues, LinkedIn’s customer support team can provide additional assistance tailored to your account. With the right fixes, you should be able to get your LinkedIn correspondence back to your native language.