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# Class java.util.Locale

    java.lang.Object
       |
       +----java.util.Locale

public final class Locale
extends Object
implements Cloneable, Serializable

A `Locale` object represents a specific geographical, political, or cultural region. An operation that requires a `Locale` to perform its task is called locale-sensitive and uses the `Locale` to tailor information for the user. For example, displaying a number is a locale-sensitive operation--the number should be formatted according to the customs/conventions of the user's native country, region, or culture.

You create a `Locale` object using one of the two constructors in this class:

>      Locale(String language, String country)
>      Locale(String language, String country, String variant)

The first argument to both constructors is a valid ISO Language Code. These codes are the lower-case two-letter codes as defined by ISO-639. You can find a full list of these codes at a number of sites, such as:
`http://www.ics.uci.edu/pub/ietf/http/related/iso639.txt`

The second argument to both constructors is a valid ISO Country Code. These codes are the upper-case two-letter codes as defined by ISO-3166. You can find a full list of these codes at a number of sites, such as:
`http://www.chemie.fu-berlin.de/diverse/doc/ISO_3166.html`

The second constructor requires a third argument--the Variant. The Variant codes are vendor and browser-specific. For example, use WIN for Windows, MAC for Macintosh, and POSIX for POSIX. Where there are two variants, separate them with an underscore, and put the most important one first. For example, a Traditional Spanish collation might be referenced, with "ES", "ES", "Traditional_WIN".

Because a `Locale` object is just an identifier for a region, no validity check is performed when you construct a `Locale`. If you want to see whether particular resources are available for the `Locale` you construct, you must query those resources. For example, ask the `NumberFormat` for the locales it supports using its `getAvailableLocales` method.
Note: When you ask for a resource for a particular locale, you get back the best available match, not necessarily precisely what you asked for. For more information, look at `ResourceBundle`.

The `Locale` class provides a number of convenient constants that you can use to create `Locale` objects for commonly used locales. For example, the following creates a `Locale` object for the United States:

>      Locale.US

Once you've created a `Locale` you can query it for information about itself. Use `getCountry` to get the ISO Country Code and `getLanguage` to get the ISO Language Code. You can use `getDisplayCountry` to get the name of the country suitable for displaying to the user. Similarly, you can use `getDisplayLanguage` to get the name of the language suitable for displaying to the user. Interestingly, the `getDisplayXXX` methods are themselves locale-sensitive and have two versions: one that uses the default locale and one that uses the locale specified as an argument.

The JDK provides a number of classes that perform locale-sensitive operations. For example, the `NumberFormat` class formats numbers, currency, or percentages in a locale-sensitive manner. Classes such as `NumberFormat` have a number of convenience methods for creating a default object of that type. For example, the `NumberFormat` class provides these three convenience methods for creating a default `NumberFormat` object:

>      NumberFormat.getInstance()
>      NumberFormat.getCurrencyInstance()
>      NumberFormat.getPercentInstance()

These methods have two variants; one with an explicit locale and one without; the latter using the default locale.

>      NumberFormat.getInstance(myLocale)
>      NumberFormat.getCurrencyInstance(myLocale)
>      NumberFormat.getPercentInstance(myLocale)

A `Locale` is the mechanism for identifying the kind of object (`NumberFormat`) that you would like to get. The locale is just a mechanism for identifying objects, not a container for the objects themselves.

Each class that performs locale-sensitive operations allows you to get all the available objects of that type. You can sift through these objects by language, country, or variant, and use the display names to present a menu to the user. For example, you can create a menu of all the collation objects suitable for a given language. Such classes must implement these three class methods:

>      public static Locale[] getAvailableLocales()
>      public static String getDisplayName(Locale objectLocale,
>                                          Locale displayLocale)
>      public static final String getDisplayName(Locale objectLocale)
>          // getDisplayName will throw MissingResourceException if the locale
>          // is not one of the available locales.

See Also:
  ResourceBundle, Format, NumberFormat, Collation

##

CANADA
  Useful constant for country.
CANADA_FRENCH
  Useful constant for country.
CHINA
  Useful constant for country.
CHINESE
  Useful constant for language.
ENGLISH
  Useful constant for language.
FRANCE
  Useful constant for country.
FRENCH
  Useful constant for language.
GERMAN
  Useful constant for language.
GERMANY
  Useful constant for country.
ITALIAN
  Useful constant for language.
ITALY
  Useful constant for country.
JAPAN
  Useful constant for country.
JAPANESE
  Useful constant for language.
KOREA
  Useful constant for country.
KOREAN
  Useful constant for language.
PRC
  Useful constant for country.
SIMPLIFIED_CHINESE
  Useful constant for language.
TAIWAN
  Useful constant for country.
TRADITIONAL_CHINESE
  Useful constant for language.
UK
  Useful constant for country.
US
  Useful constant for country.

##

Locale(String, String)
  Construct a locale from language, country.
Locale(String, String, String)
  Construct a locale from language, country, variant.

##

clone()
  Overrides Cloneable
equals(Object)
  Compares two Objects for equality.
getCountry()
  Getter for programmatic name of field, an uppercased two-letter ISO-3166 code.
getDefault()
  Common method of getting the current default Locale.
getDisplayCountry()
  Returns a name for the locale's country that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayCountry(Locale)
  Returns a name for the locale's country that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayLanguage()
  Returns a name for the locale's language that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayLanguage(Locale)
  Returns a name for the locale's language that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayName()
  Returns a name for the locale that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayName(Locale)
  Returns a name for the locale that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayVariant()
  Returns a name for the locale's variant code that is appropriate for display to the user.
getDisplayVariant(Locale)
  Returns a name for the locale's variant code that is appropriate for display to the user.
getISO3Country()
  Getter for the three-letter ISO country abbreviation of the locale.
getISO3Language()
  Getter for the three-letter ISO language abbreviation of the locale.
getLanguage()
  Getter for programmatic name of field, an lowercased two-letter ISO-639 code.
getVariant()
  Getter for programmatic name of field.
hashCode()
  Override hashCode.
setDefault(Locale)
  Sets the default.
toString()
  Getter for the programmatic name of the entire locale, with the language, country and variant separated by underbars.

##

ENGLISH

     public static final Locale ENGLISH

  Useful constant for language.

FRENCH

     public static final Locale FRENCH

  Useful constant for language.

GERMAN

     public static final Locale GERMAN

  Useful constant for language.

ITALIAN

     public static final Locale ITALIAN

  Useful constant for language.

JAPANESE

     public static final Locale JAPANESE

  Useful constant for language.

KOREAN

     public static final Locale KOREAN

  Useful constant for language.

CHINESE

     public static final Locale CHINESE

  Useful constant for language.

SIMPLIFIED_CHINESE

     public static final Locale SIMPLIFIED_CHINESE

  Useful constant for language.

TRADITIONAL_CHINESE

     public static final Locale TRADITIONAL_CHINESE

  Useful constant for language.

FRANCE

     public static final Locale FRANCE

  Useful constant for country.

GERMANY

     public static final Locale GERMANY

  Useful constant for country.

ITALY

     public static final Locale ITALY

  Useful constant for country.

JAPAN

     public static final Locale JAPAN

  Useful constant for country.

KOREA

     public static final Locale KOREA

  Useful constant for country.

CHINA

     public static final Locale CHINA

  Useful constant for country.

PRC

     public static final Locale PRC

  Useful constant for country.

TAIWAN

     public static final Locale TAIWAN

  Useful constant for country.

UK

     public static final Locale UK

  Useful constant for country.

US

     public static final Locale US

  Useful constant for country.

CANADA

     public static final Locale CANADA

  Useful constant for country.

CANADA_FRENCH

     public static final Locale CANADA_FRENCH

  Useful constant for country.

##

Locale

     public Locale(String language,
                   String country,
                   String variant)

  Construct a locale from language, country, variant. NOTE: ISO 639 is not a stable standard; some of the language codes it defines (specifically iw, ji, and in) have changed. This constructor accepts both the old codes (iw, ji, and in) and the new codes (he, yi, and id), but all other API on Locale will return only the OLD codes.

  Parameters:
    language - lowercase two-letter ISO-639 code.
    country - uppercase two-letter ISO-3166 code.
    variant - vendor and browser specific code. See class description.

Locale

     public Locale(String language,
                   String country)

  Construct a locale from language, country. NOTE: ISO 639 is not a stable standard; some of the language codes it defines (specifically iw, ji, and in) have changed. This constructor accepts both the old codes (iw, ji, and in) and the new codes (he, yi, and id), but all other API on Locale will return only the OLD codes.

  Parameters:
    language - lowercase two-letter ISO-639 code.
    country - uppercase two-letter ISO-3166 code.

##

getDefault

     public static Locale getDefault()

  Common method of getting the current default Locale. Used for the presentation: menus, dialogs, etc. Generally set once when your applet or application is initialized, then never reset. (If you do reset the default locale, you probably want to reload your GUI, so that the change is reflected in your interface.)

  More advanced programs will allow users to use different locales for different fields, e.g. in a spreadsheet.
  Note that the initial setting will match the host system.

setDefault

     public static synchronized void setDefault(Locale newLocale)

  Sets the default. Normally set once at the beginning of applet or application, then never reset. `setDefault` does not reset the host locale.

  Parameters:
    newLocale - Locale to set to.

getLanguage

     public String getLanguage()

  Getter for programmatic name of field, an lowercased two-letter ISO-639 code.

  See Also:
    getDisplayLanguage

getCountry

     public String getCountry()

  Getter for programmatic name of field, an uppercased two-letter ISO-3166 code.

  See Also:
    getDisplayCountry

getVariant

     public String getVariant()

  Getter for programmatic name of field.

  See Also:
    getDisplayVariant

toString

     public final String toString()

  Getter for the programmatic name of the entire locale, with the language, country and variant separated by underbars. Language is always lower case, and country is always uppcer case. If a field is missing, at most one underbar will occur. Example: "Een, "de_DE", "en_US_WIN", "de_POSIX", "fr_MAC"

  Overrides:
    toString in class Object
  See Also:
    getDisplayName

getISO3Language

     public String getISO3Language() throws MissingResourceException

  Getter for the three-letter ISO language abbreviation of the locale. Returns the empty string if the locale doesn't specify a language.

  Throws: MissingResourceException
    Throws MissingResourceException if the three-letter language abbreviation is not available for this locale.

getISO3Country

     public String getISO3Country() throws MissingResourceException

  Getter for the three-letter ISO country abbreviation of the locale. Returns the empty string if the locale doesn't specify a country.

  Throws: MissingResourceException
    Throws MissingResourceException if the three-letter language abbreviation is not available for this locale.

getDisplayLanguage

     public final String getDisplayLanguage()

  Returns a name for the locale's language that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the name the locale's language localized for the default locale, if that data is available. For example, if the locale is fr_FR and the default locale is en_US, getDisplayLanguage() will return "French"; if the locale is en_US and the default locale is fr_FR, getDisplayLanguage() will return "anglais". If the appropriate name isn't available (say, we don't have a Japanese name for Croatian), this function falls back on the English name and uses the ISO code as a last-resort value. If the locale doesn't specify a language, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayLanguage

     public String getDisplayLanguage(Locale inLocale)

  Returns a name for the locale's language that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the name the locale's language localized for inLocale, if that data is available. For example, if the locale is fr_FR and inLocale is en_US, getDisplayLanguage() will return "French"; if the locale is en_US and inLocale is fr_FR, getDisplayLanguage() will return "anglais". If the appropriate name isn't available (say, we don't have a Japanese name for Croatian), this function falls back on the default locale, on the English name, and finally on the ISO code as a last-resort value. If the locale doesn't specify a language, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayCountry

     public final String getDisplayCountry()

  Returns a name for the locale's country that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the name the locale's country localized for the default locale, if that data is available. For example, if the locale is fr_FR and the default locale is en_US, getDisplayCountry() will return "France"; if the locale is en_US and the default locale is fr_FR, getDisplayLanguage() will return "Etats-Unis". If the appropriate name isn't available (say, we don't have a Japanese name for Croatia), this function falls back on the English name and uses the ISO code as a last-resort value. If the locale doesn't specify a country, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayCountry

     public String getDisplayCountry(Locale inLocale)

  Returns a name for the locale's country that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the name the locale's country localized for inLocale, if that data is available. For example, if the locale is fr_FR and inLocale is en_US, getDisplayCountry() will return "France"; if the locale is en_US and inLocale is fr_FR, getDisplayLanguage() will return "Etats-Unis". If the appropriate name isn't available (say, we don't have a Japanese name for Croatia), this function falls back on the default locale, on the English name, and finally on the ISO code as a last-resort value. If the locale doesn't specify a country, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayVariant

     public final String getDisplayVariant()

  Returns a name for the locale's variant code that is appropriate for display to the user. If possible, the name will be localized for the default locale. If the locale doesn't specify a variant code, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayVariant

     public String getDisplayVariant(Locale inLocale)

  Returns a name for the locale's variant code that is appropriate for display to the user. If possible, the name will be localized for inLocale. If the locale doesn't specify a variant code, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayName

     public final String getDisplayName()

  Returns a name for the locale that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the values returned by getDisplayLanguage(), getDisplayCountry(), and getDisplayVariant() assembled into a single string. The display name will have one of the following forms:

  > language (country, variant)

  > language (country)

  > language (variant)

  > country (variant)

  > language

  > country

  > variant

  depending on which fields are specified in the locale. If the language, country, and variant fields are all empty, this function returns the empty string.

getDisplayName

     public String getDisplayName(Locale inLocale)

  Returns a name for the locale that is appropriate for display to the user. This will be the values returned by getDisplayLanguage(), getDisplayCountry(), and getDisplayVariant() assembled into a single string. The display name will have one of the following forms:

  > language (country, variant)

  > language (country)

  > language (variant)

  > country (variant)

  > language

  > country

  > variant

  depending on which fields are specified in the locale. If the language, country, and variant fields are all empty, this function returns the empty string.

clone

     public Object clone()

  Overrides Cloneable

  Overrides:
    clone in class Object

hashCode

     public synchronized int hashCode()

  Override hashCode. Since Locales are often used in hashtables, caches the value for speed.

  Overrides:
    hashCode in class Object

equals

     public boolean equals(Object obj)

  Compares two Objects for equality.

  Overrides:
    equals in class Object

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