List of NLS Parameters in Oracle Database

Below is a full list of NLS parameters in Oracle Database, along with their default values, and scopes that each parameter is available in.

ParameterDescriptionDefault ValueScope
NLS_CALENDARCalendar systemGregorianI, E, A
NLS_COMPSQL, PL/SQL operator comparisonBINARYI, E, A
NLS_CREDITCredit accounting symbolDerived from NLS_TERRITORYE
NLS_CURRENCYLocal currency symbolDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_DATE_FORMATDate formatDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_DATE_LANGUAGELanguage for day and month namesDerived from NLS_LANGUAGEI, E, A
NLS_DEBITDebit accounting symbolDerived from NLS_TERRITORYE
NLS_DUAL_CURRENCYDual currency symbolDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_ISO_CURRENCYISO international currency symbolDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_LANGLanguage, territory, character setAMERICAN_AMERICA
.US7ASCII
E
NLS_LANGUAGELanguageDerived from NLS_LANGI, A
NLS_LENGTH_SEMANTICSHow strings are treatedBYTEI, E, A
NLS_LIST_SEPARATORCharacter that separates items in a listDerived from NLS_TERRITORYE
NLS_MONETARY_CHARACTERSMonetary symbol for dollar and cents (or their equivalents)Derived from NLS_TERRITORYE
NLS_NCHAR_CONV_EXCPReports data loss during a character type conversionFALSEI, A
NLS_NUMERIC_CHARACTERSDecimal character and group separatorDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_SORTCollationDerived from NLS_LANGUAGEI, E, A
NLS_TERRITORYTerritoryDerived from NLS_LANGI, A
NLS_TIMESTAMP_FORMATTimestampDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A
NLS_TIMESTAMP_TZ_FORMATTimestamp with time zoneDerived from NLS_TERRITORYI, E, A

The values in the Scope column have the following meanings:

   I = Initialization Parameter File
   E = Environment Variable
   A = ALTER SESSION

In addition to the scopes listed in the above table, NLS parameters can also be explicitly set in SQL functions when you call them. However, not all functions accept NLS parameters, and so these aren’t listed in the scope column.

NLS parameters can be set in various places, such as at the database level, in an initialization parameter file, in environment variables, at the session level, and within some functions. See Methods of Setting NLS Parameters and their Priorities for a table that outlines each scope and its precedence order in relation to the other scopes.

Also see How to Check the Values of the NLS Parameters for a list of the views available for checking the values within each scope.

Table source: https://docs.oracle.com/en/database/oracle/oracle-database/21/nlspg/setting-up-globalization-support-environment.html