wctype(3) Library Functions Manual wctype(3)
NAME
wctype - Gets a handle to classify wide characters
LIBRARY
Standard C Library (libc)
SYNOPSIS
#include <wctype.h>
wctype_t wctype( const char *property);
The following prototype for wctype() does not conform to current industry standards and is supported only for backward compatibility:
#include <wchar.h>
wctype_t wctype(
char *property);
STANDARDS
Interfaces documented on this reference page conform to industry standards as follows:
wctype(): XSH5.0
Refer to the standards(5) reference page for more information about industry standards and associated tags.
PARAMETERS
Points to a string that identifies a character class, or property.
DESCRIPTION
The wctype() function obtains a handle for valid property names for wide characters, as defined in the current locale. The handle can then
be used as the wc_prop parameter in a subsequent call to the iswctype() function to check whether a wide character has this property. (See
the iswctype(3) reference page.) Values returned by the wctype() function are valid until the setlocale() function modifies the value of
the LC_CTYPE environment variable. The property parameter can have a value equal to one of the basic character classes or to any other
character class that is defined for a locale. The characters included in each class are specified in the locale definition file (see the
localedef(1) and locale(4) reference pages for more information). The basic character classes are as follows: A combination of the classes
alpha and digit. Alphabetic (letter) characters. This class automatically includes characters in the upper and lower classes. Blank char-
acters, such as the space or tab character. Control characters. This class does not include characters in the alpha or print class.
Numeric digit characters. This class includes the following characters:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Graphic characters for printing. This class does not include characters in the space or cntrl class but includes
all characters in the alpha, digit, and punct classes. Lowercase characters. This class does not include characters in the cntrl,
digit, punct, or space class. At a minimum, the lower class includes the 26 lowercase US-ASCII characters. These are:
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Print characters. This class includes characters in the graph and space classes
but does not include characters in the cntrl class. Punctuation characters. This class does not include characters in the space,
alpha, digit, or cntrl class. Space characters. At a minimum, this class includes the space, form-feed, newline, carriage-return,
tab, and vertical-tab characters. Uppercase characters. At a minimum, this class includes the 26 uppercase US ASCII characters.
These are:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Hexadecimal characters. This class includes the following characters:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 A B C D E F a b c d e f
For the list of supplemental properties that can be defined in Unicode locales, see the locale(4) reference page. On Tru64 UNIX systems,
Unicode character properties are defined only in locales whose names end in .UTF-8.
RETURN VALUES
On successful completion, the wctype() function returns a value of type wctype_t, which is a handle for valid property names in the current
locale. If the property parameter specifies a character class that is not valid for the current locale, the function returns the value 0
cast to wctype_t.
RELATED INFORMATION
Commands: localedef(1)
Files: locale(4)
Functions: ctype(3), iswctype(3), setlocale(3), towupper(3), wctrans(3) delim off
wctype(3)