TO_DATE

Syntax

to_date::=

Text description of to_date

Purpose

TO_DATE converts char of CHAR, VARCHAR2, NCHAR, or NVARCHAR2 datatype to a value of DATE datatype. The fmt is a date format specifying the format of char. If you omit fmt, char must be in the default date format. If fmt is 'J', for Julian, then char must be an integer.

The nlsparam has the same purpose in this function as in the TO_CHAR function for date conversion.

Do not use the TO_DATE function with a DATE value for the char argument. The first two digits of the returned DATE value can differ from the original char, depending on fmt or the default date format.

Note: This function does not support CLOB data directly. However, CLOBs can be passed in as arguments through implicit data conversion. Please refer to "Datatype Comparison Rules" for more information.

See Also: "Date Format Models"

Example

The following example converts character strings into dates:

SELECT TO_DATE(
    'January 15, 1989, 11:00 A.M.',
    'Month dd, YYYY, HH:MI A.M.',
     'NLS_DATE_LANGUAGE = American')
     FROM DUAL;

TO_DATE('
---------
15-JAN-89