locale(5)               Linux User Manual               locale(5)

NAME
       locale - Describes a locale definition file

DESCRIPTION
       The  locale  definition files contains all the information
       that the localedef(1) command needs to convert it into the
       binary locale database.

       The  definition  files  consist  of  sections  which  each
       describe a locale category in detail.

SYNTAX
       The locale definition file starts with a header, that  may
       consist of the following keywords:

       <escape_char>
              is  followed  by a character that should be used as
              the escape-character for the rest of  the  file  to
              mark  characters  that  should  be interpreted in a
              special way. It defaults to the backslash ( \ ).

       <comment_char>
              is followed by a character that will be used as the
              comment-character  for  the  rest  of  the file. It
              defaults to the number sign ( # ).

       The locale definitions is divided it  one  part  for  each
       locale  category.  Each  part  can  be copied from another
       existing locale or can be defined  from  scratch.  If  the
       category  should  be copied, the only valid keyword in the
       definition is copy followed by  the  name  of  the  locale
       which should be copied.

   LC_CTYPE
       LC_CTYPE  category  starts with the string LC_CTYPE in the
       first column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       upper  followed by a list of uppercase letters.  The  let-
              ters A trough Z are included automatically. Charac-
              ters also specified  as  cntrl,  digit,  punct,  or
              space are not allowed.

       lower  followed  by  a list of lowercase letters. The let-
              ters a trough z are included automatically. Charac-
              ters  also  specified  as  cntrl,  digit, punct, or
              space are not allowed.

       alpha  followed by a list of letters. All character speci-
              fied  as  either  upper  or lower are automatically
              included.  Characters  also  specified  as   cntrl,
              digit, punct, or space are not allowed.

       digit  followed  by  the  characters classified as numeric
              digits. Only the digits 0  trough  9  are  allowed.
              They are included by default in this class.

       space  followed  by a list of characters defined as white-
              space  characters.  Characters  also  specified  as
              upper,  lower,  alpha,  digit, graph, or xdigit are
              not allowed. The characters  <space>,  <form-feed>,
              <newline>, <carriage-return>, <tab>, and <vertical-
              tab> are automatically included.

       cntrl  followed by a list of control characters.   Charac-
              ters  also specified as upper, lower, alpha, digit,
              punct, graph, print or xdigit are not allowed.

       punct  followed by a list of punctuation characters. Char-
              acters  also  specified  as  upper,  lower,  alpha,
              digit, cntrl, xdigit or the <space>  character  are
              not allowed.

       graph  followed  by  a  list  of printable characters, not
              including the  <space>  character.  The  characters
              defined  as  upper, lower, alpha, digit, xdigit and
              punct are automatically included.  Characters  also
              specified as cntrl are not allowed.

       print  followed by a list of printable characters, includ-
              ing the <space> character. The  characters  defined
              as  upper,  lower,  alpha, digit, xdigit, punct and
              the <space> character are  automatically  included.
              Characters also specified as cntrl are not allowed.

       xdigit followed by a list of characters classified as hex-
              adecimal   digits.   The  decimal  digits  must  be
              included followed by one or more set of six charac-
              ters  in  ascending order. The following characters
              are included by default: 0 trough 9, a trough f,  A
              trough F.

       blank  followed  by  a  list  of  characters classified as
              blank.  The characters <space> and <tab> are  auto-
              matically included.

       toupper
              followed  by  a  list of mappings from lowercase to
              uppercase letters. Each mapping is a pair of a low-
              ercase  and  an uppercase letter separated with a ,
              and enclosed in parentheses.  The  members  of  the
              list are separated with semicolons.

       tolower
              followed  by  a  list of mappings from uppercase to
              lowercase letters. If the keyword  tolower  is  not
              present, the reverse of the toupper list is used.

       The LC_CTYPE definition ends with the string END LC_CYTPE.

   LC_COLLATE
       The LC_COLLATE category defines the  rules  for  collating
       characters.  Due  to  limitations  of  libc not all POSIX-
       options are implemented.

       The definition starts with the string  LC_COLLATE  in  the
       first column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       collating-element

       collating-symbol

       The order-definition starts with a line:

       order_start

       followed by a list of keywords out of forward, backward or
       position.  The order definition  consists  of  lines  that
       describe the order and is terminated with the keyword

       order_end.

       For  more  details  see  the  sources  in /usr/lib/nls/src
       notably the examples POSIX, Example and Example2

       The LC_COLLATE definition ends with the string END LC_COL-
       LATE.

   LC_MONETARY
       The  definition  starts with the string LC_MONETARY in the
       first column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       int_curr_symbol
              followed by the international currency symbol. This
              must  be  a  four  character  string containing the
              international currency symbol as defined by the ISO
              4217 standard (three characters) followed by a sep-
              arator.

       currency_symbol
              followed by the local currency symbol.

       mon_decimal_point
              followed by the string that will  be  used  as  the
              decimal  delimiter when formatting monetary quanti-
              ties.

       mon_thousands_sep
              followed by the string that will be used as a group
              separator when formatting monetary quantities.

       mon_grouping
              followed  by a string that describes the formatting
              of numeric quantities.

       positive_sign
              followed by a string that is  used  to  indicate  a
              positive sign for monetary quantities.

       negative_sign
              followed  by  a  string  that is used to indicate a
              negative sign for monetary quantities.

       int_frac_digits
              followed by the number of  fractional  digits  that
              should   be   used   when   formatting   with   the
              int_curr_symbol.

       frac_digits
              followed by the number of  fractional  digits  that
              should  be  used  when  formatting  with  the  cur-
              rency_symbol.

       p_cs_precedes
              followed by  an  integer  set  to  1  if  the  cur-
              rency_symbol or int_curr_symbol
               should  precede the formatted monetary quantity or
              set to 0 if the symbol succeeds the value.

       p_sep_by_space
              followed by an integer.

              0      means  that  no  space  should  be   printed
                     between the symbol and the value.

              1      means that a space should be printed between
                     the symbol and the value.

              2      means that a space should be printed between
                     the symbol and the sign string, if adjacent.

       n_cs_precedes

              0      - the symbol succeeds the value

              1      - the symbol precedes the value

       n_sep_by_space
              An integer set to 0 if no space separates the  cur-
              rency_symbol  or int_curr_symbol from the value for
              a negative monetary quantity, set to 1 if  a  space
              separates the symbol from the value and set to 2 if
              a space separates the symbol and the  sign  string,
              if adjacent.

       p_sign_posn

              0      Parentheses  enclose  the  quantity  and the
                     currency_symbol or int_curr_symbol.

              1      The sign string precedes  the  quantity  and
                     the  currency_symbol or the int_curr_symbol.

              2      The sign string succeeds  the  quantity  and
                     the  currency_symbol or the int_curr_symbol.

              3      The sign string precedes the currency_symbol
                     or the int_curr_symbol.

              4      The sign string succeeds the currency_symbol
                     or the int_curr_symbol.

       n_sign_posn

              0      Parentheses enclose  the  quantity  and  the
                     currency_symbol or int_curr_symbol.

              1      The  sign  string  precedes the quantity and
                     the currency_symbol or the  int_curr_symbol.

              2      The  sign  string  succeeds the quantity and
                     the currency_symbol or the  int_curr_symbol.

              3      The sign string precedes the currency_symbol
                     or the int_curr_symbol.

              4      The sign string succeeds the currency_symbol
                     or the int_curr_symbol.

       The  LC_MONETARY  definition  ends  with  the  string  END
       LC_MONETARY.

   LC_NUMERIC
       The definition starts with the string  LC_NUMERIC  in  the
       first column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       decimal_point
              followed  by  the  string  that will be used as the
              decimal delimiter when formatting  numeric  quanti-
              ties.

       thousands_sep
              followed by the string that will be used as a group
              separator when formatting numeric quantities.

       grouping
              followed by a string that describes the  formatting
              of numeric quantities.

       The   LC_NUMERIC  definition  ends  with  the  string  END
       LC_NUMERIC.

   LC_TIME
       The definition starts with the string LC_TIME in the first
       column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       abday  followed  by  a  list of abbreviated weekday names.
              The list starts with the Sunday  or  it's  transla-
              tion.

       day    followed  by  a  list  of  weekday  names. The list
              starts with the Sunday.

       abmon  followed by a list of abbreviated month names.

       mon    followed by a list of month names.

       am_pm  The appropriate representation of  the  am  and  pm
              strings.

       d_t_fmt
              The appropriate date and time format.

       d_fmt  The appropriate date format.

       t_fmt  The appropriate time format.

       t_fmt_ampm
              The  appropriate  time  format when using 12h clock
              format.

       The LC_TIME definition ends with the string END LC_TIME.

   LC_MESSAGES
       The definition starts with the string LC_MESSAGES  in  the
       first column.

       There are the following keywords allowed:

       yesexpr
              followed  by  a  regular  expression that describes
              possible yes-responses.

       noexpr followed by a  regular  expression  that  describes
              possible no-responses.

       The  LC_MESSAGES  definition  ends  with  the  string  END
       LC_MESSAGES.

       See the POSIX.2 standard for details.

FILES
       /usr/lib/locale/ - database for the current locale setting
       of that category /usr/lib/nls/charmap/* - charmap-files

BUGS
       The manpage isn't complete.

AUTHOR
       Jochen Hein (Hein@Student.TU-Clausthal.de)

CONFORMING TO
       POSIX.2

SEE ALSO
       setlocale(3),    localeconv(3),   charmap(5),   locale(1),
       localedef(1)

National Language Support  09 Nov 1994                          1