Local Name
In Salesforce internationalization, an alternate name for an account, contact, or lead stored in a local language or script.
Definition
In Salesforce internationalization, an alternate name for an account, contact, or lead stored in a local language or script. It's used in regions where records may need to display names in both standard and local formats.
In plain English
“Local Name is an alternate name for an account, contact, or lead stored in a local language or script. It's useful in regions where you might need to display names in both English and the local form (like Japanese or Arabic), so records show up correctly for users in different locales.”
Worked example
Osprey Logistics has accounts in Japan and South Korea where each company has both an English transliterated name (used in international correspondence) and a Local Name in the original script (used in local documents). Account "Acme Corp" carries an English name field; the Local Name field stores アクメ株式会社 (Japanese kanji) on the same record. Reports for the Japan team show records using the Local Name so the data is readable by Japanese-speaking users; reports for the global team use the English name. Local Name is the platform's way to support Asian-script names without forcing one canonical form on every business unit.
Why Local Name matters
In Salesforce internationalization, a Local Name is an alternate name field for accounts, contacts, or leads stored in a local language or script. Standard name fields hold the primary form (typically Latin alphabet for English-speaking orgs), while Local Name fields hold the same information in a local script like Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, or other languages. This dual-name approach is essential in regions where business is conducted in multiple scripts.
Local Name fields are particularly valuable in Asia-Pacific markets where Japanese, Chinese, and Korean characters are standard for business names. Without Local Name fields, organizations would either lose information by transliterating to Latin script or maintain two separate records. With them, the same record holds both forms, supporting users who work in either script. Configuration involves enabling the local name feature in Setup and choosing which objects need local names.
How organizations use Local Name
Operates in Japan and China and uses Local Name fields on Account and Contact records to maintain both Latin and local-script versions of names.
Enabled local names for their APAC region so customer-facing communications can use the appropriate form for each customer's preference.
Uses local names for patient records in regions where multiple scripts are common, ensuring records can be accurately retrieved and displayed.
Test your knowledge
Q1. What is a Local Name?
Q2. When are Local Names valuable?
Q3. What objects support Local Name fields?
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