Wikipedia MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that retrieves information from Wikipedia to provide context to Large Language Models (LLMs). This tool helps AI assistants access factual information from Wikipedia to ground their responses in reliable sources.

Overview

The Wikipedia MCP server provides real-time access to Wikipedia information through a standardized Model Context Protocol interface. This allows LLMs to retrieve accurate and up-to-date information directly from Wikipedia to enhance their responses.

Related MCP server: Agentic AI with MCP

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Features

• Search Wikipedia: Find articles matching specific queries with enhanced diagnostics

• Retrieve Article Content: Get full article text with all information

• Article Summaries: Get concise summaries of articles

• Section Extraction: Retrieve specific sections from articles

• Link Discovery: Find links within articles to related topics

• Related Topics: Discover topics related to a specific article

• Multi-language Support: Access Wikipedia in different languages by specifying the --language or -l argument when running the server (e.g., wikipedia-mcp --language ta for Tamil).

• Country/Locale Support: Use intuitive country codes like --country US, --country China, or --country TW instead of language codes. Automatically maps to appropriate Wikipedia language variants.

• Language Variant Support: Support for language variants such as Chinese traditional/simplified (e.g., zh-hans for Simplified Chinese, zh-tw for Traditional Chinese), Serbian scripts (sr-latn, sr-cyrl), and other regional variants.

• Optional caching: Cache API responses for improved performance using --enable-cache

• Google ADK Compatibility: Fully compatible with Google ADK agents and other AI frameworks that use strict function calling schemas

Installation

Using pipx (Recommended for Claude Desktop)

The best way to install for Claude Desktop usage is with pipx, which installs the command globally:

This ensures the wikipedia-mcp command is available in Claude Desktop's PATH.

Installing via Smithery

To install wikipedia-mcp for Claude Desktop automatically via Smithery:

From PyPI (Alternative)

You can also install directly from PyPI:

Note: If you use this method and encounter connection issues with Claude Desktop, you may need to use the full path to the command in your configuration. See the Configuration section for details.

Using a virtual environment

From source

Usage

Running the server

Kubernetes example (minimal):

Option 2: Using full path (recommended if you get connection errors)

Option 3: With country/language specification

To find the full path, run: which wikipedia-mcp

Configuration file locations:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

• Windows: %APPDATA%/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

Note: If you encounter connection errors, see the Troubleshooting section for solutions.

Documentation Index

• CLI usage and options: see docs/CLI.md

• API and MCP tools/resources: see docs/API.md

• Architecture overview: see docs/ARCHITECTURE.md

• User guide and troubleshooting: see docs/USER_GUIDE.md

• Development guide: see docs/DEVELOPMENT.md

• Testing guide: see docs/TESTING.md

Available MCP Tools

The Wikipedia MCP server provides the following tools for LLMs to interact with Wikipedia:

search_wikipedia

Search Wikipedia for articles matching a query.

Parameters:

• query (string): The search term

• limit (integer, optional): Maximum number of results to return (default: 10)

Returns:

• A list of search results with titles, snippets, and metadata

get_article

Get the full content of a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

Returns:

• Article content including text, summary, sections, links, and categories

get_summary

Get a concise summary of a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

Returns:

• A text summary of the article

get_sections

Get the sections of a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

Returns:

• A structured list of article sections with their content

get_links

Get the links contained within a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

Returns:

• A list of links to other Wikipedia articles

get_coordinates

Get the coordinates of a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

Returns:

• A dictionary containing coordinate information including:

  • title: The article title

  • pageid: The page ID

  • coordinates: List of coordinate objects with latitude, longitude, and metadata

  • exists: Whether the article exists

  • error: Any error message if retrieval failed

get_related_topics

Get topics related to a Wikipedia article based on links and categories.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

• limit (integer, optional): Maximum number of related topics (default: 10)

Returns:

• A list of related topics with relevance information

summarize_article_for_query

Get a summary of a Wikipedia article tailored to a specific query.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

• query (string): The query to focus the summary on

• max_length (integer, optional): Maximum length of the summary (default: 250)

Returns:

• A dictionary containing the title, query, and the focused summary

summarize_article_section

Get a summary of a specific section of a Wikipedia article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

• section_title (string): The title of the section to summarize

• max_length (integer, optional): Maximum length of the summary (default: 150)

Returns:

• A dictionary containing the title, section title, and the section summary

extract_key_facts

Extract key facts from a Wikipedia article, optionally focused on a specific topic within the article.

Parameters:

• title (string): The title of the Wikipedia article

• topic_within_article (string, optional): A specific topic within the article to focus fact extraction

• count (integer, optional): Number of key facts to extract (default: 5)

Returns:

• A dictionary containing the title, topic, and a list of extracted facts

Country/Locale Support

The Wikipedia MCP server supports intuitive country and region codes as an alternative to language codes. This makes it easier to access region-specific Wikipedia content without needing to know language codes.

Supported Countries and Regions

Use --list-countries to see all supported countries:

This will display countries organized by language, for example:

Usage Examples

Country-to-Language Mapping

The server automatically maps country codes to appropriate Wikipedia language editions:

• English-speaking: US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa → en

• Chinese regions:

  • CN, China → zh-hans (Simplified Chinese)

  • TW, Taiwan → zh-tw (Traditional Chinese - Taiwan)

  • HK, Hong Kong → zh-hk (Traditional Chinese - Hong Kong)

  • SG, Singapore → zh-sg (Simplified Chinese - Singapore)

• Major languages: JP→ja, DE→de, FR→fr, ES→es, IT→it, RU→ru, etc.

• Regional variants: Supports 140+ countries and regions

Error Handling

If you specify an unsupported country, you'll get a helpful error message:

Language Variants

The Wikipedia MCP server supports language variants for languages that have multiple writing systems or regional variations. This feature is particularly useful for Chinese, Serbian, Kurdish, and other languages with multiple scripts or regional differences.

Supported Language Variants

Chinese Language Variants

• zh-hans - Simplified Chinese

• zh-hant - Traditional Chinese

• zh-tw - Traditional Chinese (Taiwan)

• zh-hk - Traditional Chinese (Hong Kong)

• zh-mo - Traditional Chinese (Macau)

• zh-cn - Simplified Chinese (China)

• zh-sg - Simplified Chinese (Singapore)

• zh-my - Simplified Chinese (Malaysia)

Serbian Language Variants

• sr-latn - Serbian Latin script

• sr-cyrl - Serbian Cyrillic script

Kurdish Language Variants

• ku-latn - Kurdish Latin script

• ku-arab - Kurdish Arabic script

Norwegian Language Variants

• no - Norwegian (automatically mapped to Bokmål)

Usage Examples

How Language Variants Work

When you specify a language variant like zh-hans, the server:

1. Maps the variant to the base Wikipedia language (e.g., zh for Chinese variants)

2. Uses the base language for API connections to the Wikipedia servers

3. Includes the variant parameter in API requests to get content in the specific variant

4. Returns content formatted according to the specified variant's conventions

This approach ensures optimal compatibility with Wikipedia's API while providing access to variant-specific content and formatting.

Example Prompts

Once the server is running and configured with Claude Desktop, you can use prompts like:

General Wikipedia queries:

• "Tell me about quantum computing using the Wikipedia information."

• "Summarize the history of artificial intelligence based on Wikipedia."

• "What does Wikipedia say about climate change?"

• "Find Wikipedia articles related to machine learning."

• "Get me the introduction section of the article on neural networks from Wikipedia."

• "What are the coordinates of the Eiffel Tower?"

• "Find the latitude and longitude of Mount Everest from Wikipedia."

• "Get coordinate information for famous landmarks in Paris."

Using country-specific Wikipedia:

• "Search Wikipedia China for information about the Great Wall." (uses Chinese Wikipedia)

• "Tell me about Tokyo from Japanese Wikipedia sources."

• "What does German Wikipedia say about the Berlin Wall?"

• "Find information about the Eiffel Tower from French Wikipedia."

• "Get Taiwan Wikipedia's article about Taiwanese cuisine."

Language variant examples:

• "Search Traditional Chinese Wikipedia for information about Taiwan."

• "Find Simplified Chinese articles about modern China."

• "Get information from Serbian Latin Wikipedia about Belgrade."

MCP Resources

The server also provides MCP resources (similar to HTTP endpoints but for MCP):

• search/{query}: Search Wikipedia for articles matching the query

• article/{title}: Get the full content of a Wikipedia article

• summary/{title}: Get a summary of a Wikipedia article

• sections/{title}: Get the sections of a Wikipedia article

• links/{title}: Get the links in a Wikipedia article

• coordinates/{title}: Get the coordinates of a Wikipedia article

• summary/{title}/query/{query}/length/{max_length}: Get a query-focused summary of an article

• summary/{title}/section/{section_title}/length/{max_length}: Get a summary of a specific article section

• facts/{title}/topic/{topic_within_article}/count/{count}: Extract key facts from an article

Development

Local Development Setup

Project Structure

• wikipedia_mcp/: Main package

  • __main__.py: Entry point for the package

  • server.py: MCP server implementation

  • wikipedia_client.py: Wikipedia API client

  • api/: API implementation

  • core/: Core functionality

  • utils/: Utility functions

• tests/: Test suite

  • test_basic.py: Basic package tests

  • test_cli.py: Command-line interface tests

  • test_server_tools.py: Comprehensive server and tool tests

Testing

The project includes a comprehensive test suite to ensure reliability and functionality.

Test Structure

The test suite is organized in the tests/ directory with the following test files:

• test_basic.py: Basic package functionality tests

• test_cli.py: Command-line interface and transport tests

• test_server_tools.py: Comprehensive tests for all MCP tools and Wikipedia client functionality

Running Tests

Run All Tests

Run Specific Test Categories

Test Categories

Unit Tests

• WikipediaClient Tests: Mock-based tests for all client methods

  • Search functionality

  • Article retrieval

  • Summary extraction

  • Section parsing

  • Link extraction

  • Related topics discovery

• Server Tests: MCP server creation and tool registration

• CLI Tests: Command-line interface functionality

Integration Tests

• Real API Tests: Tests that make actual calls to Wikipedia API

• End-to-End Tests: Complete workflow testing

Test Configuration

The project uses pytest.ini for test configuration:

Continuous Integration

All tests are designed to:

• Run reliably in CI/CD environments

• Handle network failures gracefully

• Provide clear error messages

• Cover edge cases and error conditions

Adding New Tests

When contributing new features:

1. Add unit tests for new functionality

2. Include both success and failure scenarios

3. Mock external dependencies (Wikipedia API)

4. Add integration tests for end-to-end validation

5. Follow existing test patterns and naming conventions

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Claude Desktop Connection Issues

Problem: Claude Desktop shows errors like spawn wikipedia-mcp ENOENT or cannot find the command.

Cause: This occurs when the wikipedia-mcp command is installed in a user-specific location (like ~/.local/bin/) that's not in Claude Desktop's PATH.

Solutions:

1. Use full path to the command (Recommended):

   { "mcpServers": { "wikipedia": { "command": "/home/username/.local/bin/wikipedia-mcp" } } }

   To find your exact path, run: which wikipedia-mcp

2. Install with pipx for global access:

   pipx install wikipedia-mcp

   Then use the standard configuration:

   { "mcpServers": { "wikipedia": { "command": "wikipedia-mcp" } } }

3. Create a symlink to a global location:

   sudo ln -s ~/.local/bin/wikipedia-mcp /usr/local/bin/wikipedia-mcp

Other Issues

• Article Not Found: Check the exact spelling of article titles

• Rate Limiting: Wikipedia API has rate limits; consider adding delays between requests

• Large Articles: Some Wikipedia articles are very large and may exceed token limits

Troubleshooting Search Issues

If you're experiencing empty search results, use the new diagnostic tools:

1. Test Connectivity

Use the test_wikipedia_connectivity tool to check if you can reach Wikipedia's API:

This returns diagnostics including:

• Connection status (success or failed)

• Response time in milliseconds

• Site/host information when successful

• Error details when connectivity fails

2. Enhanced Search Error Information

The search_wikipedia tool now returns detailed metadata:

Example response:

When no results are found, you receive:

3. Common Search Issues and Solutions

• Empty results: Run the connectivity test, verify query spelling, try broader terms.

• Connection errors: Check firewall or proxy settings, ensure *.wikipedia.org is reachable.

• API limits: Requests with limit > 500 are automatically capped; negative values reset to the default (10).

4. Debugging with Verbose Logging

Launch the server with debug logging for deeper insight:

This emits the request parameters, response status codes, and any warnings returned by the API.

Understanding the Model Context Protocol (MCP)

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is not a traditional HTTP API but a specialized protocol for communication between LLMs and external tools. Key characteristics:

• Uses stdio (standard input/output) or SSE (Server-Sent Events) for communication

• Designed specifically for AI model interaction

• Provides standardized formats for tools, resources, and prompts

• Integrates directly with Claude and other MCP-compatible AI systems

Claude Desktop acts as the MCP client, while this server provides the tools and resources that Claude can use to access Wikipedia information.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

License

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

Connect with the Author

• 🌐 Portfolio: ravikumar-dev.me

• 📝 Blog: Medium

• 💼 LinkedIn: in/ravi-kumar-e

• 🐦 Twitter: @Ravikumar_d3v