Babel, a multilingual package for use with LATEX's ... - linsrv.net

Using a macro instead of a “real” name is deprecated.
If used inside braces there might be some non-local changes, as this would be
roughly equivalent to:
{\selectlanguage{} ...}\selectlanguage{}
If you want a change which is really local, you must enclose this code with an
additional grouping level.
This command can be used as environment, too.
\begin{otherlanguage}
{〈language〉} . . . \end{otherlanguage}
The environment otherlanguage does basically the same as \selectlanguage,
except the language change is (mostly) local to the environment.
Actually, there might be some non-local changes, as this environment is roughly
equivalent to:
\begingroup
\selectlanguage{}
...
\endgroup
\selectlanguage{}
If you want a change which is really local, you must enclose this environment with
an additional grouping, like braces {}.
Spaces after the environment are ignored.
\foreignlanguage
{〈language〉}{〈text〉}
The command \foreignlanguage takes two arguments; the second argument is a
phrase to be typeset according to the rules of the language named in its first
argument. This command (1) only switches the extra definitions and the
hyphenation rules for the language, not the names and dates, (2) does not send
information about the language to auxiliary files (i.e., the surrounding language is
still in force), and (3) it works even if the language has not been set as package
option (but in such a case it only sets the hyphenation patterns).
\begin{otherlanguage*}
{〈language〉} . . . \end{otherlanguage*}
Same as \foreignlanguage but as environment. Spaces after the environment are
not ignored.
This environment (or in some cases otherlanguage) may be required for
intermixing left-to-right typesetting with right-to-left typesetting in engines not
supporting a change in the writing direction inside a line.
\begin{hyphenrules}
{〈language〉} . . . \end{hyphenrules}
The environment hyphenrules can be used to select only the hyphenation rules to
be used (it can be used as command, too). This can for instance be used to select
‘nohyphenation’, provided that in language.dat the ‘language’ nohyphenation is
defined by loading zerohyph.tex. It deactivates language shorthands, too (but not
user shorthands).
Except for these simple uses, hyphenrules is discouraged and otherlanguage*
(the starred version) is preferred, as the former does not take into account
possible changes in encodings or characters like, say, ’ done by some languages
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