<html> element does not have a valid value for its [lang] attribute
To ensure correct pronunciation, screen readers use a different sound library for each language they support. Screen readers can switch between these language libraries easily, but only if a web page specifies which language to read for a given piece of content.
To ensure correct pronunciation of the page as a whole, you must specify a valid BCP 47 language for the <html> element.
How the Lighthouse invalid <html> lang value audit fails #
Lighthouse flags pages whose <html> element doesn't have a valid value for its lang attribute:
Note that the <html> element does not have a [lang] attribute audit checks whether a lang attribute is present. This audit checks whether the value for that attribute is valid.
The Lighthouse Accessibility score is a weighted average of all the accessibility audits. See the Lighthouse accessibility scoring post for more information.
How to fix an invalid HTML lang attribute #
To ensure your page's content is pronounced correctly for screen reader users, use a valid language code in the lang attribute of the <html> element.
For example, this sample code sets the language of the document to English:
<html lang="en">Resources #
- Source code for
<html>element does not have a valid value for its[lang]attribute audit - <html> element must have a valid value for the lang attribute (Deque University)