Database Character Set and Collation [[DEFAULT] COLLATE  collation_name ] ALTER DATABASE  db_name [[DEFAULT] CHARACTER SET  charset_name ] [[DEFAULT] COLLATE  collation_name ] The keyword  SCHEMA  can be used instead of  DATABASE . The  CHARACTER SET  and  COLLATE  clauses make it possible to create databases with different character sets and collations on the same MySQL server. Database options are stored in the data dictionary and can be examined by checking the INFORMATION_SCHEMA.SCHEMATA  table. Example: MySQL chooses the database character set and database collation in the following manner: CREATE DATABASE  db_name  CHARACTER SET latin1 COLLATE latin1_swedish_ci; •If both  CHARACTER SET  charset_name  and  COLLATE  collation_name  are specified, character set charset_name  and collation  collation_name  are used. •If  CHARACTER SET  charset_name  is specified without  COLLATE , character set  charset_name and its default collation are used. To see the default collation for each character set, use the  SHOW CHARACTER SET  statement or query the  INFORMATION_SCHEMA CHARACTER_SETS  table. •If  COLLATE  collation_name  is specified without  CHARACTER SET , the character set associated with collation_name  and collation  collation_name  are used. •Otherwise (neither  CHARACTER SET  nor  COLLATE  is specified), the server character set and server collation are used. The character set and collation for the default database can be determined from the values of the character_set_database  and  collation_database  system variables. The server sets these variables whenever the default database changes. If there is no default database, the variables have the same value as the corresponding server-level system variables,  character_set_server  and collation_server . To see the default character set and collation for a given database, use these statements: Alternatively, to display the values without changing the default database: The database character set and collation affect these aspects of server operation: •For stored routines (procedures and functions), the database character set and collation in effect at routine creation time are used as the character set and collation of character data parameters for •For  LOAD DATA  statements that include no  CHARACTER SET  clause, the server uses the character set indicated by the  character_set_database  system variable to interpret the information in the file. To override this, provide an explicit  CHARACTER SET  clause. •For  CREATE TABLE  statements, the database character set and collation are used as default values for table definitions if the table character set and collation are not specified. To override this, provide explicit CHARACTER SET  and  COLLATE  table options. 1935 USE  db_name ; SELECT @@character_set_database, @@collation_database; SELECT DEFAULT_CHARACTER_SET_NAME, DEFAULT_COLLATION_NAME FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.SCHEMATA WHERE SCHEMA_NAME = ’ db_name ’;