What is a .LOCALIZED file?
A .LOCALIZED file is a special type of file used on macOS computers to help display system directory names in different languages, depending on the user's settings. This file is part of macOS's way of making sure that users can see important folder names in their preferred language. For example, the "Applications" folder might appear as "Aplicaciones" to someone who uses their computer in Spanish.
The .LOCALIZED file itself doesn't contain any visible data or information—it's essentially an empty file. Its main role is to signal to the macOS system that the names of the folders where these files are located should be shown in the user's chosen language. It's important not to delete these files from system directories because doing so can affect how folder names are displayed.
These files are usually hidden and most macOS users will never see them or need to interact with them directly. They do not appear even if you choose to display hidden files on your Mac (using the Cmd + Shift + . shortcut). However, if you are using another operating system on your Mac, like Windows through a virtual machine program such as Parallels Desktop, and you have set it to show hidden files, you might see these .LOCALIZED files.
To open or view a .LOCALIZED file, you generally don't need any specific program because they are handled by macOS itself, which is included with the operating system. Since these files are part of the system's way of managing language display for folder names, there's no need to open them with any application.
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