# wikipedia-mcp-server [Health: Active]
**Category:** 💻 Developer Tools
**Repository:** https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server
**GitHub Stars:** 2
**Views:** 0
**Installs:** 0
**Upvotes:** 0
**Directory Page:** https://allmcps.com/mcp/wikipedia-mcp-server
## Description
Search Wikipedia, read summaries and full text, target sections, find nearby pages, list languages.
## Claude Desktop Quick Installation
Install path detected from listing signals. Uses `bunx` (confidence: high):
```json
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia-mcp-server": {
"command": "bunx",
"args": ["@cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server@latest"]
}
}
```
## Documentation & README
@cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server
Search Wikipedia articles, read summaries and full text, target sections, find nearby pages, and list language editions via MCP. STDIO or Streamable HTTP.
6 Tools
[](./CHANGELOG.md) [](./LICENSE) [](https://github.com/users/cyanheads/packages/container/package/wikipedia-mcp-server) [](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) [](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server) [](https://www.typescriptlang.org/) [](https://bun.sh/)
[](https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server/releases/latest/download/wikipedia-mcp-server.mcpb) [](https://cursor.com/en/install-mcp?name=wikipedia-mcp-server&config=eyJjb21tYW5kIjoibnB4IiwiYXJncyI6WyIteSIsIkBjeWFuaGVhZHMvd2lraXBlZGlhLW1jcC1zZXJ2ZXIiXX0=) [](https://vscode.dev/redirect?url=vscode:mcp/install?%7B%22name%22%3A%22wikipedia-mcp-server%22%2C%22command%22%3A%22npx%22%2C%22args%22%3A%5B%22-y%22%2C%22%40cyanheads%2Fwikipedia-mcp-server%22%5D%7D)
[](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@cyanheads/mcp-ts-core)
---
## Tools
Six tools for working with Wikipedia across all language editions:
| Tool | Description |
|:---|:---|
| `wikipedia_search` | Full-text search across Wikipedia, returning ranked results with plain-text snippets and page IDs. |
| `wikipedia_get_summary` | Lead-section summary for any article — plain text, Wikidata QID, description, thumbnail URL, and page type. |
| `wikipedia_get_article` | Full article or a targeted section as clean plain text, with section markers preserved. |
| `wikipedia_get_sections` | Table of contents with `section_index` values for targeted section reads. |
| `wikipedia_search_nearby` | Geotagged Wikipedia articles within a radius of a WGS 84 coordinate, sorted by distance. |
| `wikipedia_get_languages` | All language editions available for an article, with titles and URLs. |
### `wikipedia_search`
Search Wikipedia articles by full-text query.
- Returns ranked results with plain-text snippets (HTML stripped), page IDs, and word counts
- Use when the exact article title is unknown or to discover multiple articles on a topic
- Page beyond the first result page with `offset`; the enrichment `nextOffset` signals more results remain (pass it back as `offset`)
- Supports all Wikipedia language editions via the `language` parameter
---
### `wikipedia_get_summary`
Fetch the lead-section summary for a Wikipedia article.
- Returns the 2–4 paragraph intro, Wikidata QID for cross-referencing, short description, and thumbnail URL
- Surfaces `page_type: "disambiguation"` — a signal to follow up with `wikipedia_search` using a more specific query
- Redirect pages followed automatically
- Right tool for 90% of encyclopedic lookups
---
### `wikipedia_get_article`
Fetch article content as clean plain text.
- Without `section_index`: returns the full article with `== Section ==` markers — unless it exceeds `WIKIPEDIA_ARTICLE_OVERFLOW_BYTES` (default 80 KB), in which case it returns a compact section outline (`truncated: true`) pointing to `wikipedia_get_sections` plus a `section_index` read
- With `section_index` (from `wikipedia_get_sections`): returns that section together with every subsection nested under it, each heading above its own body
- Data tables and figures are omitted from both paths, so a section whose body is entirely a data table returns its heading and little else. Tables used only for layout — multi-column lists, succession boxes — keep their content
- Page furniture is omitted too: maintenance banners, sister-project and library-resource boxes, portal bars, and spoken-article notices. Hatnotes are kept — they name the article to read next
- Redirect pages followed automatically
---
### `wikipedia_get_sections`
Fetch the table of contents for a Wikipedia article.
- Returns section titles, heading levels, section numbering (e.g. "2.1"), and `section_index` values
- `section_index` is the integer to pass to `wikipedia_get_article` for targeted reads
- Call this before `wikipedia_get_article` when only a specific section is needed
- Redirect pages followed automatically
---
### `wikipedia_search_nearby`
Find Wikipedia articles about places near a geographic coordinate.
- Results sorted ascending by distance in meters
- Only articles with geographic coordinates in their Wikidata record are returned
- Radius capped at 10,000 meters; up to 50 results per call
---
### `wikipedia_get_languages`
List language editions available for a Wikipedia article.
- Returns each edition's language code, tool-usable subdomain code (`edition_code`), article title, and URL
- Pass `edition_code` as the `language` parameter on other tools — it can differ from `language_code` (e.g. `gsw` vs `als`)
- Use for cross-language research or to discover a non-English title before switching editions
## Features
Built on [`@cyanheads/mcp-ts-core`](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@cyanheads/mcp-ts-core):
- Declarative tool definitions — single file per tool, framework handles registration and validation
- Unified error handling — handlers throw, framework catches, classifies, and formats
- Pluggable auth: `none`, `jwt`, `oauth`
- Swappable storage backends: `in-memory`, `filesystem`, `Supabase`, `Cloudflare KV/R2/D1`
- Structured logging with optional OpenTelemetry tracing
- STDIO and Streamable HTTP transports
Wikipedia-specific:
- Dual API integration — MediaWiki REST API (`/api/rest_v1/`) for summaries, Action API (`/w/api.php`) for search, full text, sections, geo search, and language links
- Retry and backoff on all requests; `User-Agent` header per Wikimedia API policy
- Both read paths render to the same plain-text shape — `== Heading ==` markers, one list item per line — the full article from Action API extracts, a section from the parser's own HTML for that section. A section read additionally keeps code-sample indentation and the lists inside layout tables, neither of which the extract carries
- Per-call `language` parameter on every tool — all Wikipedia language editions accessible in a single session
- Language validation against a live edition registry built from the MediaWiki `action=sitematrix` endpoint (cached 24h) — catches structurally valid but nonexistent editions before they cause timeouts
Agent-friendly output:
- `page_type` field on summaries discriminates article / disambiguation / redirect — no string parsing needed
- `wikibase_item` (Wikidata QID) on summaries enables direct cross-referencing with wikidata-mcp-server
- `section_index` on table-of-contents entries links directly to the targeted-read parameter on `wikipedia_get_article`
- Recovery hints on every error type — callers get actionable next steps (e.g., "use `wikipedia_search` to find the correct title")
## Getting started
Add the following to your MCP client configuration file.
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "bunx",
"args": ["@cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server@latest"],
"env": {
"MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE": "stdio",
"MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}
```
Or with npx (no Bun required):
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server@latest"],
"env": {
"MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE": "stdio",
"MCP_LOG_LEVEL": "info"
}
}
}
}
```
Or with Docker:
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia-mcp-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "docker",
"args": [
"run", "-i", "--rm",
"-e", "MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE=stdio",
"ghcr.io/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server:latest"
]
}
}
}
```
For Streamable HTTP, set the transport and start the server:
```sh
MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE=http MCP_HTTP_PORT=3010 bun run start:http
# Server listens at http://localhost:3010/mcp
```
### Prerequisites
- [Bun v1.3.0](https://bun.sh/) or higher (or Node.js v24+).
- No API keys required — Wikipedia's API is public.
### Installation
1. **Clone the repository:**
```sh
git clone https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server.git
```
2. **Navigate into the directory:**
```sh
cd wikipedia-mcp-server
```
3. **Install dependencies:**
```sh
bun install
```
4. **Configure environment (optional):**
```sh
cp .env.example .env
# edit .env if you want to customize WIKIPEDIA_USER_AGENT or logging
```
## Configuration
| Variable | Description | Default |
|:---------|:------------|:--------|
| `WIKIPEDIA_USER_AGENT` | User-Agent header sent with every Wikimedia API request. Customize for your deployment. | `wikipedia-mcp-server/0.1.17 (https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server)` |
| `WIKIPEDIA_BASE_URL` | Optional single-instance override. Unset (default): compose per-language hosts, `language` selects the edition per call. Set to a full base URL (e.g. a private MediaWiki mirror): route every call at that one fixed host — `language` no longer varies it. | *(unset)* |
| `WIKIPEDIA_ARTICLE_OVERFLOW_BYTES` | Byte budget above which a full-article read (`wikipedia_get_article` without `section_index`) returns a section outline instead of the full text. Tuned for this domain — ordinary articles stay whole; only genuine mega-articles (World War II ~86 KB, United States ~94 KB) outline. Section-targeted reads are never affected. | `80000` |
| `MCP_TRANSPORT_TYPE` | Transport: `stdio` or `http`. | `stdio` |
| `MCP_HTTP_PORT` | Port for HTTP server. | `3010` |
| `MCP_SESSION_MODE` | HTTP session mode: `stateless`, `stateful`, or `auto` (which resolves to `stateful`). The Docker image ships `stateless`. | `auto` |
| `MCP_AUTH_MODE` | Auth mode: `none`, `jwt`, or `oauth`. | `none` |
| `MCP_LOG_LEVEL` | Log level (RFC 5424). | `info` |
| `LOGS_DIR` | Directory for log files (Node.js only). | `/logs` |
| `OTEL_ENABLED` | Enable OpenTelemetry instrumentation (spans, metrics, completion logs). | `false` |
See [`.env.example`](https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server/blob/HEAD/.env.example) for the full list of optional overrides.
## Running the server
### Local development
- **Build and run:**
```sh
# One-time build
bun run rebuild
# Run the built server
bun run start:stdio
# or
bun run start:http
```
- **Run checks and tests:**
```sh
bun run devcheck # Lint, format, typecheck, security
bun run test # Vitest test suite
bun run lint:mcp # Validate MCP definitions against spec
```
### Docker
```sh
docker build -t wikipedia-mcp-server .
docker run --rm -p 3010:3010 wikipedia-mcp-server
```
The Dockerfile defaults to HTTP transport, stateless session mode, and logs to `/var/log/wikipedia-mcp-server`. OpenTelemetry peer dependencies are installed by default — build with `--build-arg OTEL_ENABLED=false` to omit them.
## Project structure
| Directory | Purpose |
|:----------|:--------|
| `src/index.ts` | `createApp()` entry point — registers tools and inits the Wikipedia service. |
| `src/config` | Server-specific environment variable parsing and validation with Zod. |
| `src/mcp-server/tools` | Tool definitions (`*.tool.ts`) — one file per tool. |
| `src/services/wikipedia` | WikipediaService — REST API + Action API client with retry/backoff and language validation. |
| `tests/` | Unit and integration tests mirroring `src/`. |
## Development guide
See [`CLAUDE.md`](https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server/blob/HEAD/CLAUDE.md) for development guidelines and architectural rules. The short version:
- Handlers throw, framework catches — no `try/catch` in tool logic
- Use `ctx.log` for request-scoped logging, `ctx.state` for tenant-scoped storage
- Register new tools in `src/mcp-server/tools/definitions/index.ts`
- Wrap external API calls: validate raw → normalize to domain type → return output schema; never fabricate missing fields
## Contributing
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Run checks and tests before submitting:
```sh
bun run devcheck
bun run test
```
## License
Apache-2.0 — see [LICENSE](https://github.com/cyanheads/wikipedia-mcp-server/blob/HEAD/LICENSE) for details.