TartuNLP MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides seamless access to TartuNLP translation services from the University of Tartu. This server enables AI assistants and applications to perform high-quality machine translation across 700+ language pairs, with specialized support for European and Finno-Ugric languages.

Features

• 🌍 700+ Language Pairs - Comprehensive translation coverage including European languages and rare Finno-Ugric languages
• 🚀 Docker-First Deployment - Pre-built Docker images for easy deployment across platforms
• 🔧 Simple Integration - Standard MCP protocol support for seamless integration with AI assistants
• 🎯 Specialized Language Support - Expert translation for Estonian, Finnish, Sami languages, and other minority languages
• 📦 Zero Configuration - Works out of the box with sensible defaults

Quick Start

Using Docker (Recommended)

The easiest way to use this MCP server is via Docker. Pre-built images are automatically published to GitHub Container Registry and support both linux/amd64 and linux/arm64 platforms.

Add this configuration to your MCP settings file (e.g., ~/.vscode-server/data/User/mcp.json or Claude Desktop config):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "TartuNLP": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "-i",
        "--rm",
        "ghcr.io/tbitu/tartunlp-mcp:latest"
      ]
    }
  }
}

[!TIP] The Docker approach requires no local Python installation or dependency management. The image is kept minimal (~150MB) for fast downloads.

Using Python (Local Development)

For local development or if you prefer not to use Docker:

1. Install the package:

   pip install -e .
   

2. Add to your MCP configuration:

   Linux/Mac:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "TartuNLP": {
         "command": "python3",
         "args": ["-m", "tartunlp_mcp_server"]
       }
     }
   }
   

   Windows:

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "TartuNLP": {
         "command": "python",
         "args": ["-m", "tartunlp_mcp_server"]
       }
     }
   }
   

[!NOTE] Requires Python 3.8 or higher. Use python3 on systems where both Python 2 and 3 are installed.

Available Tools

Once configured, the MCP server exposes the following tools to AI assistants:

translate_text

Translate text between any supported language pair.

Parameters:

• text (string): The text to translate
• source_lang (string): Source language code (e.g., 'eng', 'est', 'fin')
• target_lang (string): Target language code (e.g., 'eng', 'est', 'fin')
• model (string, optional): Specific translation model/domain to use

get_supported_languages

Retrieve the complete list of supported language pairs and available translation models.

Returns: List of all 700+ available translation pairs with source/target language information.

Development

Local Testing

# Install dependencies
pip install -e .

# Run the server locally
python -m tartunlp_mcp_server

Building Docker Images

# Build locally
docker build -t tartunlp-mcp .

# Test the Docker image
docker run -i --rm tartunlp-mcp

CI/CD

Docker images are automatically built and published to GitHub Container Registry on every push to the main branch. The workflow:

1. Builds multi-platform images (linux/amd64, linux/arm64)
2. Tags images with branch name, commit SHA, and latest
3. Publishes to ghcr.io/tbitu/tartunlp-mcp

See .github/workflows/docker-build-push.yml for details.

Supported Languages

The server supports 700 translation pairs as provided by TartuNLP's API. Based on the actual API response, the supported language pairs are:

Core European Languages with Full Coverage

• English (eng) ↔ Estonian, German, Lithuanian, Latvian, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian + all minority languages
• Estonian (est) ↔ English, German, Lithuanian, Latvian, Finnish, Russian, Ukrainian + all minority languages
• Finnish (fin) ↔ English, Estonian, German, Lithuanian, Latvian, Russian + all minority languages
• Russian (rus) ↔ English, Estonian, German, Lithuanian, Latvian, Finnish, Ukrainian + all minority languages
• Latvian (lav) ↔ English, Estonian, German, Lithuanian, Finnish, Russian + all minority languages

Limited European Language Support

• German (ger) ↔ English, Estonian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Finnish, Russian (no minority language pairs)
• Lithuanian (lit) ↔ English, Estonian, German, Latvian, Finnish, Russian (no minority language pairs)
• Ukrainian (ukr) ↔ English, Estonian, Russian only
• Norwegian (nor) ↔ All minority languages only (no major European languages except through minority languages)
• Hungarian (hun) ↔ All minority languages only (no major European languages except through minority languages)

Finno-Ugric & Minority Languages (Full Matrix)

All minority languages can translate to/from each other and to/from: eng, est, fin, rus, lav, nor, hun

• Karelian (krl) - Karelian language
• Ludian (lud) - Ludic language
• Veps (vep) - Vepsian language
• Livonian (liv) - Livonian language (critically endangered)
• Võro (vro) - Võro language (South Estonian)
• Mari (mhr) - Eastern Mari
• Hill Mari (mrj) - Western Mari
• Udmurt (udm) - Udmurt language
• Komi-Permyak (koi) - Komi-Permyak language
• Komi-Zyrian (kpv) - Komi-Zyrian language
• Moksha (mdf) - Moksha Mordvin
• Erzya (myv) - Erzya Mordvin
• Olonets (olo) - Olonets Karelian
• Mansi (mns) - Mansi language
• Khanty (kca) - Khanty language

Sami Languages (Full Matrix)

• Southern Sami (sma) - Åarjelsaemien gïele
• Northern Sami (sme) - Davvisámegiella
• Inari Sami (smn) - Anarâškielâ
• Skolt Sami (sms) - Sääʹmǩiõll
• Lule Sami (smj) - Julevsámegiella

Key Translation Patterns

Major European Language Pairs:

• eng ↔ est, ger, lit, lav, fin, rus, ukr
• est ↔ eng, ger, lit, lav, fin, rus, ukr
• fin ↔ eng, est, ger, lit, lav, rus
• rus ↔ eng, est, ger, lit, lav, fin, ukr
• lav ↔ eng, est, ger, lit, fin, rus
• ger ↔ eng, est, lit, lav, fin, rus (limited)
• lit ↔ eng, est, ger, lav, fin, rus (limited)
• ukr ↔ eng, est, rus (very limited)

Minority Language Hub: All 20 minority/indigenous languages form a complete translation matrix with each other and connect to: eng, est, fin, rus, lav, nor, hun

Note: The exact language pairs are determined by TartuNLP's API and may be updated. Use the get_supported_languages tool to get the current list.

Tools

• translate_text: Translate text between supported languages
• get_supported_languages: List all supported language pairs