> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://mariadb.com/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets.md).

# Character Sets and Collations

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{% content-ref url="/pages/T5ZjxH2rM7j4Nz9sVdCe" %}
[Character Set and Collation Overview](/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets/character-set-and-collation-overview.md)
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Learn the core concepts of character sets and collations in MariaDB, including how they define string storage and sorting rules.
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{% content-ref url="/pages/sFOGD4C1yH0zK400uLFS" %}
[Setting Character Sets and Collations](/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets/setting-character-sets-and-collations.md)
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Complete Setting Character Sets and Collations data type guide for MariaDB. Complete reference for syntax, valid values, storage requirements, and range.
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{% content-ref url="/pages/mIAIcWSnvsgcPOf16ies" %}
[Supported Character Sets and Collations](/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets/supported-character-sets-and-collations.md)
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Complete character sets reference: SHOW CHARACTER SET command, information\_schema.CHARACTER\_SETS/COLLATIONS tables, NO PAD queries, and ci/cs flags.
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{% content-ref url="/pages/wgpL22lZZCivxTPXhQ62" %}
[Unicode](/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets/unicode.md)
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Explore MariaDB's support for Unicode, covering the differences between the utf8mb3 and utf8mb4 character sets for multi-byte storage.
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{% content-ref url="/pages/92XQaVilDgbK0HsgZFRR" %}
[Internationalization and Localization](/docs/server/reference/data-types/string-data-types/character-sets/internationalization-and-localization.md)
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Discover how MariaDB supports internationalization and localization, enabling databases to store and process data in multiple languages.
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