Oracle SQL Developer

Setting up the Globalization Support Environment11.2 Setting up the Globalization Support EnvironmentThis topic discusses how to set up a globalization support environment. It includes thefollowing topics:■■■■■■■■■Setting NLS ParametersChoosing a Locale with the NLS_LANG Environment VariableLanguage and Territory ParametersDate and Time ParametersCalendar DefinitionsNumeric and List ParametersMonetary ParametersLinguistic Sorting and SearchingLength Semantics11.2.1 Setting NLS ParametersNLS (National Language Support) parameters determine the locale-specific behavioron both the client and the server. NLS parameters can be specified several ways. In thisguide, altering parameters for the user session and overriding the parameters in SQLfunctions are discussed. Both of these techniques accomplished through the use of SQLstatements.You can alter the NLS parameters settings by:■ Setting NLS parameters in an ALTER SESSION statement to override the defaultvalues that are set for the session in the initialization parameter file, or that are setby the client with environment variables. For example:ALTER SESSION SET NLS_SORT = french;Note that the changes that you make with ALTER SESSION apply only to thecurrent user session and are not present the next time you log in.See Also:■■■"Setting NLS Parameters" in Oracle Database GlobalizationSupport Guide for details on setting the NLS parametersOracle Database SQL Reference for more information about theALTER SESSION statementOracle Database Administrator's Guide for information on theinitialization parameter file■Using NLS parameters within a SQL function to override the default values thatare set for the session in the initialization parameter file, set for the client withenvironment variables, or set for the session by the ALTER SESSION statement.For example:TO_CHAR(hiredate,'DD/MON/YYYY','nls_date_language = FRENCH')Working in a Global Environment 11-3