math-core 0.4.0

Convert LaTeX math to MathML Core

math-core

A Python library for converting LaTeX math expressions to MathML Core.

Overview

math-core converts LaTeX mathematical expressions into MathML Core, a streamlined subset of MathML that is supported by all major web browsers. It lets you render mathematical content on the web without requiring JavaScript libraries or polyfills.

Features

• Convert LaTeX math expressions to MathML Core
• Support for both inline and display (block) math
• Define custom LaTeX macros for extended functionality
• Global and local counter for numbered equations
• Pretty-printing option for readable MathML output
• Comprehensive error handling with descriptive error messages

Installation

pip install math-core

Quick Start

from math_core import LatexToMathML

# Create a converter instance
converter = LatexToMathML()

# Convert inline math
mathml = converter.convert_with_local_counter("x^2 + y^2 = z^2", displaystyle=False)
print(mathml)
# Output: <math><msup><mi>x</mi><mn>2</mn></msup><mo>+</mo><msup><mi>y</mi><mn>2</mn></msup><mo>=</mo><msup><mi>z</mi><mn>2</mn></msup></math>

# Convert display math
mathml = converter.convert_with_local_counter(r"\frac{1}{2}", displaystyle=True)
print(mathml)
# Output: <math display="block"><mfrac><mn>1</mn><mn>2</mn></mfrac></math>

Usage

Basic Usage

from math_core import LatexToMathML, LatexError

# Initialize converter
converter = LatexToMathML.with_config(pretty_print="always")

# Convert LaTeX to MathML
mathml = converter.convert_with_local_counter(r"\sqrt{x^2 + 1}", displaystyle=False)
print(mathml)

Custom LaTeX Macros

Define custom macros to extend or modify LaTeX command behavior:

# Define custom macros
macros = {
    "d": r"\mathrm{d}",      # Differential d
    "R": r"\mathbb{R}",      # Real numbers
    "vec": r"\mathbf{#1}"    # Vector notation
}

converter = LatexToMathML.with_config(macros=macros)
mathml = converter.convert_with_local_counter(r"\d x", displaystyle=False)

Numbered Equations with Global Counter

For documents with multiple numbered equations:

converter = LatexToMathML()

# First equation gets (1)
eq1 = converter.convert_with_global_counter(
    r"\begin{align}E = mc^2\end{align}",
    displaystyle=True
)

# Second equation gets (2)
eq2 = converter.convert_with_global_counter(
    r"\begin{align}F = ma\end{align}",
    displaystyle=True
)

# Reset counter when starting a new chapter/section
converter.reset_global_counter()

# This equation gets (1) again
eq3 = converter.convert_with_global_counter(
    r"\begin{align}p = mv\end{align}",
    displaystyle=True
)

Local Counter for Independent Numbering

Use local counters when equation numbers should restart within each conversion:

converter = LatexToMathML()

# Each conversion has independent numbering
doc1 = converter.convert_with_local_counter(
    r"\begin{align}a &= b\\c &= d\end{align}",
    displaystyle=True
)  # Contains (1) and (2)

doc2 = converter.convert_with_local_counter(
    r"\begin{align}x &= y\\z &= w\end{align}",
    displaystyle=True
)  # Also contains (1) and (2)

API Reference

LatexToMathML

The main converter class.

Constructors:

• The default constructor, LatexToMathML(), creates an instance with default configuration.
• LatexToMathML.with_config(**config) -> LatexToMathML | LatexError: Create a LatexToMathML instance with specified configuration options. See below for available configuration options. This method may return a LatexError when parsing macro definitions.

Configuration values:

• pretty_print (str, optional): A string indicating whether to pretty print the MathML output. Options are “never”, “always”, or “auto”. “auto” means that all block equations will be pretty printed. Default: “never”.
• macros (dict[str, str], optional): Dictionary of LaTeX macros for custom commands.
• xml_namespace (bool, optional): A boolean indicating whether to include xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" in the <math> tag. Default: False.
• continue_on_error (bool, optional): A boolean indicating whether to return an error for conversion errors. If conversion fails and this is True, an HTML snippet describing the error will be returned, instead of returning LatexError. Default: False.

Methods:

• convert_with_global_counter(latex: str, displaystyle: bool) -> str | LatexError: Convert LaTeX to MathML using a global equation counter.
• convert_with_local_counter(latex: str, displaystyle: bool) -> str | LatexError: Convert LaTeX to MathML using a local equation counter.
• reset_global_counter() -> None: Reset the global equation counter to zero.

LatexError

Error returned when LaTeX parsing or conversion fails.

from math_core import LatexToMathML, LatexError

converter = LatexToMathML()
result = converter.convert_with_local_counter(r"\invalid", displaystyle=False)
if isinstance(result, LatexError):
    print(f"Conversion failed: {result.message}")

Use Cases

Static Site Generators

Integrate math-core into your static site generator to convert LaTeX in Markdown files:

import re
from math_core import LatexToMathML

converter = LatexToMathML(pretty_print="auto")

def process_math(content):
    # Replace display math $$...$$; do this first to avoid conflicts with inline math delimiters
    content = re.sub(
        r"\$\$([^\$]+)\$\$",
        lambda m: converter.convert_with_local_counter(m.group(1), displaystyle=True),
        content,
    )

    # Replace inline math $...$
    content = re.sub(
        r"\$([^\$]+)\$",
        lambda m: converter.convert_with_local_counter(m.group(1), displaystyle=False),
        content,
    )

    return content

Web Applications

Generate MathML on the server side:

from flask import Flask, render_template_string
from math_core import LatexToMathML, LatexError

app = Flask(__name__)
converter = LatexToMathML()

@app.route("/equation/<latex>")
def render_equation(latex):
    match converter.convert_with_local_counter(latex, displaystyle=True):
        case str() as mathml:
            return render_template_string(
                "<html><body>{{ mathml|safe }}</body></html>", mathml=mathml
            )
        case LatexError():
            return "Invalid equation", 400

Why MathML Core?

MathML Core is a carefully selected subset of MathML 4 that focuses on essential mathematical notation while ensuring consistent rendering across browsers. Unlike full MathML or JavaScript-based solutions:

• Native browser support: No JavaScript required
• Accessibility: Better screen reader support
• Performance: Faster rendering than JS solutions
• SEO-friendly: Search engines can index mathematical content
• Future-proof: Part of web standards with ongoing browser support

Browser Support

Firefox currently has the most complete support for MathML Core, with Chrome close behind. Safari has the least support and some rendering issues exist when using MathML Core, but it is improving with each release.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.