| .. highlightlang:: c | 
 |  | 
 | .. _unicodeobjects: | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode Objects and Codecs | 
 | -------------------------- | 
 |  | 
 | .. sectionauthor:: Marc-André Lemburg <mal@lemburg.com> | 
 | .. sectionauthor:: Georg Brandl <georg@python.org> | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode Objects | 
 | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ | 
 |  | 
 | Since the implementation of :pep:`393` in Python 3.3, Unicode objects internally | 
 | use a variety of representations, in order to allow handling the complete range | 
 | of Unicode characters while staying memory efficient.  There are special cases | 
 | for strings where all code points are below 128, 256, or 65536; otherwise, code | 
 | points must be below 1114112 (which is the full Unicode range). | 
 |  | 
 | :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` and UTF-8 representations are created on demand and cached | 
 | in the Unicode object.  The :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` representation is deprecated | 
 | and inefficient; it should be avoided in performance- or memory-sensitive | 
 | situations. | 
 |  | 
 | Due to the transition between the old APIs and the new APIs, unicode objects | 
 | can internally be in two states depending on how they were created: | 
 |  | 
 | * "canonical" unicode objects are all objects created by a non-deprecated | 
 |   unicode API.  They use the most efficient representation allowed by the | 
 |   implementation. | 
 |  | 
 | * "legacy" unicode objects have been created through one of the deprecated | 
 |   APIs (typically :c:func:`PyUnicode_FromUnicode`) and only bear the | 
 |   :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` representation; you will have to call | 
 |   :c:func:`PyUnicode_READY` on them before calling any other API. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode Type | 
 | """""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the basic Unicode object types used for the Unicode implementation in | 
 | Python: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:type:: Py_UCS4 | 
 |             Py_UCS2 | 
 |             Py_UCS1 | 
 |  | 
 |    These types are typedefs for unsigned integer types wide enough to contain | 
 |    characters of 32 bits, 16 bits and 8 bits, respectively.  When dealing with | 
 |    single Unicode characters, use :c:type:`Py_UCS4`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:type:: Py_UNICODE | 
 |  | 
 |    This is a typedef of :c:type:`wchar_t`, which is a 16-bit type or 32-bit type | 
 |    depending on the platform. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.3 | 
 |       In previous versions, this was a 16-bit type or a 32-bit type depending on | 
 |       whether you selected a "narrow" or "wide" Unicode version of Python at | 
 |       build time. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:type:: PyASCIIObject | 
 |             PyCompactUnicodeObject | 
 |             PyUnicodeObject | 
 |  | 
 |    These subtypes of :c:type:`PyObject` represent a Python Unicode object.  In | 
 |    almost all cases, they shouldn't be used directly, since all API functions | 
 |    that deal with Unicode objects take and return :c:type:`PyObject` pointers. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:var:: PyTypeObject PyUnicode_Type | 
 |  | 
 |    This instance of :c:type:`PyTypeObject` represents the Python Unicode type.  It | 
 |    is exposed to Python code as ``str``. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | The following APIs are really C macros and can be used to do fast checks and to | 
 | access internal read-only data of Unicode objects: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_Check(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return true if the object *o* is a Unicode object or an instance of a Unicode | 
 |    subtype. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_CheckExact(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return true if the object *o* is a Unicode object, but not an instance of a | 
 |    subtype. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_READY(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Ensure the string object *o* is in the "canonical" representation.  This is | 
 |    required before using any of the access macros described below. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. XXX expand on when it is not required | 
 |  | 
 |    Returns 0 on success and -1 with an exception set on failure, which in | 
 |    particular happens if memory allocation fails. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_GET_LENGTH(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the length of the Unicode string, in code points.  *o* has to be a | 
 |    Unicode object in the "canonical" representation (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS1* PyUnicode_1BYTE_DATA(PyObject *o) | 
 |                 Py_UCS2* PyUnicode_2BYTE_DATA(PyObject *o) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* PyUnicode_4BYTE_DATA(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a pointer to the canonical representation cast to UCS1, UCS2 or UCS4 | 
 |    integer types for direct character access.  No checks are performed if the | 
 |    canonical representation has the correct character size; use | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_KIND` to select the right macro.  Make sure | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_READY` has been called before accessing this. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:macro:: PyUnicode_WCHAR_KIND | 
 |              PyUnicode_1BYTE_KIND | 
 |              PyUnicode_2BYTE_KIND | 
 |              PyUnicode_4BYTE_KIND | 
 |  | 
 |    Return values of the :c:func:`PyUnicode_KIND` macro. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_KIND(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return one of the PyUnicode kind constants (see above) that indicate how many | 
 |    bytes per character this Unicode object uses to store its data.  *o* has to | 
 |    be a Unicode object in the "canonical" representation (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. XXX document "0" return value? | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: void* PyUnicode_DATA(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a void pointer to the raw unicode buffer.  *o* has to be a Unicode | 
 |    object in the "canonical" representation (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: void PyUnicode_WRITE(int kind, void *data, Py_ssize_t index, \ | 
 |                                      Py_UCS4 value) | 
 |  | 
 |    Write into a canonical representation *data* (as obtained with | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_DATA`).  This macro does not do any sanity checks and is | 
 |    intended for usage in loops.  The caller should cache the *kind* value and | 
 |    *data* pointer as obtained from other macro calls.  *index* is the index in | 
 |    the string (starts at 0) and *value* is the new code point value which should | 
 |    be written to that location. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS4 PyUnicode_READ(int kind, void *data, Py_ssize_t index) | 
 |  | 
 |    Read a code point from a canonical representation *data* (as obtained with | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_DATA`).  No checks or ready calls are performed. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS4 PyUnicode_READ_CHAR(PyObject *o, Py_ssize_t index) | 
 |  | 
 |    Read a character from a Unicode object *o*, which must be in the "canonical" | 
 |    representation.  This is less efficient than :c:func:`PyUnicode_READ` if you | 
 |    do multiple consecutive reads. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyUnicode_MAX_CHAR_VALUE(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the maximum code point that is suitable for creating another string | 
 |    based on *o*, which must be in the "canonical" representation.  This is | 
 |    always an approximation but more efficient than iterating over the string. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_ClearFreeList() | 
 |  | 
 |    Clear the free list. Return the total number of freed items. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_GET_SIZE(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the size of the deprecated :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` representation, in | 
 |    code units (this includes surrogate pairs as 2 units).  *o* has to be a | 
 |    Unicode object (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style Unicode API, please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_GET_LENGTH`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_GET_DATA_SIZE(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the size of the deprecated :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` representation in | 
 |    bytes.  *o* has to be a Unicode object (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style Unicode API, please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_GET_LENGTH`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE* PyUnicode_AS_UNICODE(PyObject *o) | 
 |                 const char* PyUnicode_AS_DATA(PyObject *o) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a pointer to a :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` representation of the object.  The | 
 |    returned buffer is always terminated with an extra null code point.  It | 
 |    may also contain embedded null code points, which would cause the string | 
 |    to be truncated when used in most C functions.  The ``AS_DATA`` form | 
 |    casts the pointer to :c:type:`const char *`.  The *o* argument has to be | 
 |    a Unicode object (not checked). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.3 | 
 |       This macro is now inefficient -- because in many cases the | 
 |       :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` representation does not exist and needs to be created | 
 |       -- and can fail (return *NULL* with an exception set).  Try to port the | 
 |       code to use the new :c:func:`PyUnicode_nBYTE_DATA` macros or use | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_WRITE` or :c:func:`PyUnicode_READ`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style Unicode API, please migrate to using the | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_nBYTE_DATA` family of macros. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode Character Properties | 
 | """""""""""""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode provides many different character properties. The most often needed ones | 
 | are available through these macros which are mapped to C functions depending on | 
 | the Python configuration. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISSPACE(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a whitespace character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISLOWER(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a lowercase character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISUPPER(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is an uppercase character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISTITLE(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a titlecase character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISLINEBREAK(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a linebreak character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISDECIMAL(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a decimal character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISDIGIT(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a digit character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISNUMERIC(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a numeric character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISALPHA(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is an alphabetic character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISALNUM(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is an alphanumeric character. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_ISPRINTABLE(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 or 0 depending on whether *ch* is a printable character. | 
 |    Nonprintable characters are those characters defined in the Unicode character | 
 |    database as "Other" or "Separator", excepting the ASCII space (0x20) which is | 
 |    considered printable.  (Note that printable characters in this context are | 
 |    those which should not be escaped when :func:`repr` is invoked on a string. | 
 |    It has no bearing on the handling of strings written to :data:`sys.stdout` or | 
 |    :data:`sys.stderr`.) | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | These APIs can be used for fast direct character conversions: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE Py_UNICODE_TOLOWER(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to lower case. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated:: 3.3 | 
 |       This function uses simple case mappings. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE Py_UNICODE_TOUPPER(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to upper case. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated:: 3.3 | 
 |       This function uses simple case mappings. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE Py_UNICODE_TOTITLE(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to title case. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated:: 3.3 | 
 |       This function uses simple case mappings. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_TODECIMAL(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to a decimal positive integer.  Return | 
 |    ``-1`` if this is not possible.  This macro does not raise exceptions. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int Py_UNICODE_TODIGIT(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to a single digit integer. Return ``-1`` if | 
 |    this is not possible.  This macro does not raise exceptions. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: double Py_UNICODE_TONUMERIC(Py_UNICODE ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the character *ch* converted to a double. Return ``-1.0`` if this is not | 
 |    possible.  This macro does not raise exceptions. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | These APIs can be used to work with surrogates: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:macro:: Py_UNICODE_IS_SURROGATE(ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Check if *ch* is a surrogate (``0xD800 <= ch <= 0xDFFF``). | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:macro:: Py_UNICODE_IS_HIGH_SURROGATE(ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Check if *ch* is an high surrogate (``0xD800 <= ch <= 0xDBFF``). | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:macro:: Py_UNICODE_IS_LOW_SURROGATE(ch) | 
 |  | 
 |    Check if *ch* is a low surrogate (``0xDC00 <= ch <= 0xDFFF``). | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:macro:: Py_UNICODE_JOIN_SURROGATES(high, low) | 
 |  | 
 |    Join two surrogate characters and return a single Py_UCS4 value. | 
 |    *high* and *low* are respectively the leading and trailing surrogates in a | 
 |    surrogate pair. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Creating and accessing Unicode strings | 
 | """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | To create Unicode objects and access their basic sequence properties, use these | 
 | APIs: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_New(Py_ssize_t size, Py_UCS4 maxchar) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a new Unicode object.  *maxchar* should be the true maximum code point | 
 |    to be placed in the string.  As an approximation, it can be rounded up to the | 
 |    nearest value in the sequence 127, 255, 65535, 1114111. | 
 |  | 
 |    This is the recommended way to allocate a new Unicode object.  Objects | 
 |    created using this function are not resizable. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromKindAndData(int kind, const void *buffer, \ | 
 |                                                     Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a new Unicode object with the given *kind* (possible values are | 
 |    :c:macro:`PyUnicode_1BYTE_KIND` etc., as returned by | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_KIND`).  The *buffer* must point to an array of *size* | 
 |    units of 1, 2 or 4 bytes per character, as given by the kind. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromStringAndSize(const char *u, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object from the char buffer *u*.  The bytes will be | 
 |    interpreted as being UTF-8 encoded.  The buffer is copied into the new | 
 |    object. If the buffer is not *NULL*, the return value might be a shared | 
 |    object, i.e. modification of the data is not allowed. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *u* is *NULL*, this function behaves like :c:func:`PyUnicode_FromUnicode` | 
 |    with the buffer set to *NULL*.  This usage is deprecated in favor of | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_New`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject *PyUnicode_FromString(const char *u) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object from an UTF-8 encoded null-terminated char buffer | 
 |    *u*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromFormat(const char *format, ...) | 
 |  | 
 |    Take a C :c:func:`printf`\ -style *format* string and a variable number of | 
 |    arguments, calculate the size of the resulting Python unicode string and return | 
 |    a string with the values formatted into it.  The variable arguments must be C | 
 |    types and must correspond exactly to the format characters in the *format* | 
 |    ASCII-encoded string. The following format characters are allowed: | 
 |  | 
 |    .. % This should be exactly the same as the table in PyErr_Format. | 
 |    .. % The descriptions for %zd and %zu are wrong, but the truth is complicated | 
 |    .. % because not all compilers support the %z width modifier -- we fake it | 
 |    .. % when necessary via interpolating PY_FORMAT_SIZE_T. | 
 |    .. % Similar comments apply to the %ll width modifier and | 
 |    .. % PY_FORMAT_LONG_LONG. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. tabularcolumns:: |l|l|L| | 
 |  | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | Format Characters | Type                | Comment                        | | 
 |    +===================+=====================+================================+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%%`        | *n/a*               | The literal % character.       | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%c`        | int                 | A single character,            | | 
 |    |                   |                     | represented as an C int.       | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%d`        | int                 | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%d")``.              | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%u`        | unsigned int        | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%u")``.              | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%ld`       | long                | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%ld")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%li`       | long                | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%li")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%lu`       | unsigned long       | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%lu")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%lld`      | long long           | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%lld")``.            | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%lli`      | long long           | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%lli")``.            | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%llu`      | unsigned long long  | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%llu")``.            | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%zd`       | Py_ssize_t          | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%zd")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%zi`       | Py_ssize_t          | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%zi")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%zu`       | size_t              | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%zu")``.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%i`        | int                 | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%i")``.              | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%x`        | int                 | Exactly equivalent to          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%x")``.              | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%s`        | char\*              | A null-terminated C character  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | array.                         | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%p`        | void\*              | The hex representation of a C  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | pointer. Mostly equivalent to  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf("%p")`` except that   | | 
 |    |                   |                     | it is guaranteed to start with | | 
 |    |                   |                     | the literal ``0x`` regardless  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | of what the platform's         | | 
 |    |                   |                     | ``printf`` yields.             | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%A`        | PyObject\*          | The result of calling          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | :func:`ascii`.                 | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%U`        | PyObject\*          | A unicode object.              | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%V`        | PyObject\*, char \* | A unicode object (which may be | | 
 |    |                   |                     | *NULL*) and a null-terminated  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | C character array as a second  | | 
 |    |                   |                     | parameter (which will be used, | | 
 |    |                   |                     | if the first parameter is      | | 
 |    |                   |                     | *NULL*).                       | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%S`        | PyObject\*          | The result of calling          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | :c:func:`PyObject_Str`.        | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |    | :attr:`%R`        | PyObject\*          | The result of calling          | | 
 |    |                   |                     | :c:func:`PyObject_Repr`.       | | 
 |    +-------------------+---------------------+--------------------------------+ | 
 |  | 
 |    An unrecognized format character causes all the rest of the format string to be | 
 |    copied as-is to the result string, and any extra arguments discarded. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. note:: | 
 |  | 
 |       The `"%lld"` and `"%llu"` format specifiers are only available | 
 |       when :const:`HAVE_LONG_LONG` is defined. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. note:: | 
 |       The width formatter unit is number of characters rather than bytes. | 
 |       The precision formatter unit is number of bytes for ``"%s"`` and | 
 |       ``"%V"`` (if the ``PyObject*`` argument is NULL), and a number of | 
 |       characters for ``"%A"``, ``"%U"``, ``"%S"``, ``"%R"`` and ``"%V"`` | 
 |       (if the ``PyObject*`` argument is not NULL). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.2 | 
 |       Support for ``"%lld"`` and ``"%llu"`` added. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.3 | 
 |       Support for ``"%li"``, ``"%lli"`` and ``"%zi"`` added. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.4 | 
 |       Support width and precision formatter for ``"%s"``, ``"%A"``, ``"%U"``, | 
 |       ``"%V"``, ``"%S"``, ``"%R"`` added. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromFormatV(const char *format, va_list vargs) | 
 |  | 
 |    Identical to :c:func:`PyUnicode_FromFormat` except that it takes exactly two | 
 |    arguments. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromEncodedObject(PyObject *obj, \ | 
 |                                const char *encoding, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Coerce an encoded object *obj* to an Unicode object and return a reference with | 
 |    incremented refcount. | 
 |  | 
 |    :class:`bytes`, :class:`bytearray` and other | 
 |    :term:`bytes-like objects <bytes-like object>` | 
 |    are decoded according to the given *encoding* and using the error handling | 
 |    defined by *errors*. Both can be *NULL* to have the interface use the default | 
 |    values (see the next section for details). | 
 |  | 
 |    All other objects, including Unicode objects, cause a :exc:`TypeError` to be | 
 |    set. | 
 |  | 
 |    The API returns *NULL* if there was an error.  The caller is responsible for | 
 |    decref'ing the returned objects. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_GetLength(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the length of the Unicode object, in code points. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_CopyCharacters(PyObject *to, Py_ssize_t to_start, \ | 
 |                     PyObject *from, Py_ssize_t from_start, Py_ssize_t how_many) | 
 |  | 
 |    Copy characters from one Unicode object into another.  This function performs | 
 |    character conversion when necessary and falls back to :c:func:`memcpy` if | 
 |    possible.  Returns ``-1`` and sets an exception on error, otherwise returns | 
 |    ``0``. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_Fill(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t start, \ | 
 |                         Py_ssize_t length, Py_UCS4 fill_char) | 
 |  | 
 |    Fill a string with a character: write *fill_char* into | 
 |    ``unicode[start:start+length]``. | 
 |  | 
 |    Fail if *fill_char* is bigger than the string maximum character, or if the | 
 |    string has more than 1 reference. | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the number of written character, or return ``-1`` and raise an | 
 |    exception on error. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_WriteChar(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t index, \ | 
 |                                         Py_UCS4 character) | 
 |  | 
 |    Write a character to a string.  The string must have been created through | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_New`.  Since Unicode strings are supposed to be immutable, | 
 |    the string must not be shared, or have been hashed yet. | 
 |  | 
 |    This function checks that *unicode* is a Unicode object, that the index is | 
 |    not out of bounds, and that the object can be modified safely (i.e. that it | 
 |    its reference count is one), in contrast to the macro version | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_WRITE_CHAR`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS4 PyUnicode_ReadChar(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t index) | 
 |  | 
 |    Read a character from a string.  This function checks that *unicode* is a | 
 |    Unicode object and the index is not out of bounds, in contrast to the macro | 
 |    version :c:func:`PyUnicode_READ_CHAR`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Substring(PyObject *str, Py_ssize_t start, \ | 
 |                                               Py_ssize_t end) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a substring of *str*, from character index *start* (included) to | 
 |    character index *end* (excluded).  Negative indices are not supported. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS4* PyUnicode_AsUCS4(PyObject *u, Py_UCS4 *buffer, \ | 
 |                                           Py_ssize_t buflen, int copy_null) | 
 |  | 
 |    Copy the string *u* into a UCS4 buffer, including a null character, if | 
 |    *copy_null* is set.  Returns *NULL* and sets an exception on error (in | 
 |    particular, a :exc:`ValueError` if *buflen* is smaller than the length of | 
 |    *u*).  *buffer* is returned on success. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UCS4* PyUnicode_AsUCS4Copy(PyObject *u) | 
 |  | 
 |    Copy the string *u* into a new UCS4 buffer that is allocated using | 
 |    :c:func:`PyMem_Malloc`.  If this fails, *NULL* is returned with a | 
 |    :exc:`MemoryError` set.  The returned buffer always has an extra | 
 |    null code point appended. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Deprecated Py_UNICODE APIs | 
 | """""""""""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |  | 
 | These API functions are deprecated with the implementation of :pep:`393`. | 
 | Extension modules can continue using them, as they will not be removed in Python | 
 | 3.x, but need to be aware that their use can now cause performance and memory hits. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromUnicode(const Py_UNICODE *u, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object from the Py_UNICODE buffer *u* of the given size. *u* | 
 |    may be *NULL* which causes the contents to be undefined. It is the user's | 
 |    responsibility to fill in the needed data.  The buffer is copied into the new | 
 |    object. | 
 |  | 
 |    If the buffer is not *NULL*, the return value might be a shared object. | 
 |    Therefore, modification of the resulting Unicode object is only allowed when | 
 |    *u* is *NULL*. | 
 |  | 
 |    If the buffer is *NULL*, :c:func:`PyUnicode_READY` must be called once the | 
 |    string content has been filled before using any of the access macros such as | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_KIND`. | 
 |  | 
 |    Please migrate to using :c:func:`PyUnicode_FromKindAndData` or | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_New`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE* PyUnicode_AsUnicode(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a read-only pointer to the Unicode object's internal | 
 |    :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer, or *NULL* on error. This will create the | 
 |    :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` representation of the object if it is not yet | 
 |    available. The buffer is always terminated with an extra null code point. | 
 |    Note that the resulting :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` string may also contain | 
 |    embedded null code points, which would cause the string to be truncated when | 
 |    used in most C functions. | 
 |  | 
 |    Please migrate to using :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUCS4`, | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_Substring`, :c:func:`PyUnicode_ReadChar` or similar new | 
 |    APIs. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_TransformDecimalToASCII(Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by replacing all decimal digits in | 
 |    :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* by ASCII digits 0--9 | 
 |    according to their decimal value.  Return *NULL* if an exception occurs. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE* PyUnicode_AsUnicodeAndSize(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t *size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Like :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUnicode`, but also saves the :c:func:`Py_UNICODE` | 
 |    array length (excluding the extra null terminator) in *size*. | 
 |    Note that the resulting :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` string | 
 |    may contain embedded null code points, which would cause the string to be | 
 |    truncated when used in most C functions. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_UNICODE* PyUnicode_AsUnicodeCopy(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a copy of a Unicode string ending with a null code point. Return *NULL* | 
 |    and raise a :exc:`MemoryError` exception on memory allocation failure, | 
 |    otherwise return a new allocated buffer (use :c:func:`PyMem_Free` to free | 
 |    the buffer). Note that the resulting :c:type:`Py_UNICODE*` string may | 
 |    contain embedded null code points, which would cause the string to be | 
 |    truncated when used in most C functions. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.2 | 
 |  | 
 |    Please migrate to using :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUCS4Copy` or similar new APIs. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_GetSize(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the size of the deprecated :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` representation, in | 
 |    code units (this includes surrogate pairs as 2 units). | 
 |  | 
 |    Please migrate to using :c:func:`PyUnicode_GetLength`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromObject(PyObject *obj) | 
 |  | 
 |    Shortcut for ``PyUnicode_FromEncodedObject(obj, NULL, "strict")`` which is used | 
 |    throughout the interpreter whenever coercion to Unicode is needed. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Locale Encoding | 
 | """"""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | The current locale encoding can be used to decode text from the operating | 
 | system. | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeLocaleAndSize(const char *str, \ | 
 |                                                         Py_ssize_t len, \ | 
 |                                                         const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Decode a string from the current locale encoding. The supported | 
 |    error handlers are ``"strict"`` and ``"surrogateescape"`` | 
 |    (:pep:`383`). The decoder uses ``"strict"`` error handler if | 
 |    *errors* is ``NULL``.  *str* must end with a null character but | 
 |    cannot contain embedded null characters. | 
 |  | 
 |    Use :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeFSDefaultAndSize` to decode a string from | 
 |    :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` (the locale encoding read at | 
 |    Python startup). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. seealso:: | 
 |  | 
 |       The :c:func:`Py_DecodeLocale` function. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeLocale(const char *str, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Similar to :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeLocaleAndSize`, but compute the string | 
 |    length using :c:func:`strlen`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeLocale(PyObject *unicode, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object to the current locale encoding. The | 
 |    supported error handlers are ``"strict"`` and ``"surrogateescape"`` | 
 |    (:pep:`383`). The encoder uses ``"strict"`` error handler if | 
 |    *errors* is ``NULL``. Return a :class:`bytes` object. *str* cannot | 
 |    contain embedded null characters. | 
 |  | 
 |    Use :c:func:`PyUnicode_EncodeFSDefault` to encode a string to | 
 |    :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` (the locale encoding read at | 
 |    Python startup). | 
 |  | 
 |    .. seealso:: | 
 |  | 
 |       The :c:func:`Py_EncodeLocale` function. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | File System Encoding | 
 | """""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | To encode and decode file names and other environment strings, | 
 | :c:data:`Py_FileSystemEncoding` should be used as the encoding, and | 
 | ``"surrogateescape"`` should be used as the error handler (:pep:`383`). To | 
 | encode file names during argument parsing, the ``"O&"`` converter should be | 
 | used, passing :c:func:`PyUnicode_FSConverter` as the conversion function: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_FSConverter(PyObject* obj, void* result) | 
 |  | 
 |    ParseTuple converter: encode :class:`str` objects to :class:`bytes` using | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_EncodeFSDefault`; :class:`bytes` objects are output as-is. | 
 |    *result* must be a :c:type:`PyBytesObject*` which must be released when it is | 
 |    no longer used. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.1 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | To decode file names during argument parsing, the ``"O&"`` converter should be | 
 | used, passing :c:func:`PyUnicode_FSDecoder` as the conversion function: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_FSDecoder(PyObject* obj, void* result) | 
 |  | 
 |    ParseTuple converter: decode :class:`bytes` objects to :class:`str` using | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeFSDefaultAndSize`; :class:`str` objects are output | 
 |    as-is. *result* must be a :c:type:`PyUnicodeObject*` which must be released | 
 |    when it is no longer used. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.2 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeFSDefaultAndSize(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Decode a string using :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` and the | 
 |    ``"surrogateescape"`` error handler, or ``"strict"`` on Windows. | 
 |  | 
 |    If :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` is not set, fall back to the | 
 |    locale encoding. | 
 |  | 
 |    :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` is initialized at startup from the | 
 |    locale encoding and cannot be modified later. If you need to decode a string | 
 |    from the current locale encoding, use | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeLocaleAndSize`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. seealso:: | 
 |  | 
 |       The :c:func:`Py_DecodeLocale` function. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.2 | 
 |       Use ``"strict"`` error handler on Windows. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeFSDefault(const char *s) | 
 |  | 
 |    Decode a null-terminated string using :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` | 
 |    and the ``"surrogateescape"`` error handler, or ``"strict"`` on Windows. | 
 |  | 
 |    If :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` is not set, fall back to the | 
 |    locale encoding. | 
 |  | 
 |    Use :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeFSDefaultAndSize` if you know the string length. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionchanged:: 3.2 | 
 |       Use ``"strict"`` error handler on Windows. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeFSDefault(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object to :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` with the | 
 |    ``"surrogateescape"`` error handler, or ``"strict"`` on Windows, and return | 
 |    :class:`bytes`. Note that the resulting :class:`bytes` object may contain | 
 |    null bytes. | 
 |  | 
 |    If :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` is not set, fall back to the | 
 |    locale encoding. | 
 |  | 
 |    :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` is initialized at startup from the | 
 |    locale encoding and cannot be modified later. If you need to encode a string | 
 |    to the current locale encoding, use :c:func:`PyUnicode_EncodeLocale`. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. seealso:: | 
 |  | 
 |       The :c:func:`Py_EncodeLocale` function. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.2 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | wchar_t Support | 
 | """"""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | :c:type:`wchar_t` support for platforms which support it: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_FromWideChar(const wchar_t *w, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object from the :c:type:`wchar_t` buffer *w* of the given *size*. | 
 |    Passing -1 as the *size* indicates that the function must itself compute the length, | 
 |    using wcslen. | 
 |    Return *NULL* on failure. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_AsWideChar(PyUnicodeObject *unicode, wchar_t *w, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Copy the Unicode object contents into the :c:type:`wchar_t` buffer *w*.  At most | 
 |    *size* :c:type:`wchar_t` characters are copied (excluding a possibly trailing | 
 |    null termination character).  Return the number of :c:type:`wchar_t` characters | 
 |    copied or -1 in case of an error.  Note that the resulting :c:type:`wchar_t*` | 
 |    string may or may not be null-terminated.  It is the responsibility of the caller | 
 |    to make sure that the :c:type:`wchar_t*` string is null-terminated in case this is | 
 |    required by the application. Also, note that the :c:type:`wchar_t*` string | 
 |    might contain null characters, which would cause the string to be truncated | 
 |    when used with most C functions. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: wchar_t* PyUnicode_AsWideCharString(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t *size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Convert the Unicode object to a wide character string. The output string | 
 |    always ends with a null character. If *size* is not *NULL*, write the number | 
 |    of wide characters (excluding the trailing null termination character) into | 
 |    *\*size*. | 
 |  | 
 |    Returns a buffer allocated by :c:func:`PyMem_Alloc` (use | 
 |    :c:func:`PyMem_Free` to free it) on success. On error, returns *NULL*, | 
 |    *\*size* is undefined and raises a :exc:`MemoryError`. Note that the | 
 |    resulting :c:type:`wchar_t` string might contain null characters, which | 
 |    would cause the string to be truncated when used with most C functions. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.2 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | UCS4 Support | 
 | """""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 | .. XXX are these meant to be public? | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: size_t Py_UCS4_strlen(const Py_UCS4 *u) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* Py_UCS4_strcpy(Py_UCS4 *s1, const Py_UCS4 *s2) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* Py_UCS4_strncpy(Py_UCS4 *s1, const Py_UCS4 *s2, size_t n) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* Py_UCS4_strcat(Py_UCS4 *s1, const Py_UCS4 *s2) | 
 |                 int Py_UCS4_strcmp(const Py_UCS4 *s1, const Py_UCS4 *s2) | 
 |                 int Py_UCS4_strncmp(const Py_UCS4 *s1, const Py_UCS4 *s2, size_t n) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* Py_UCS4_strchr(const Py_UCS4 *s, Py_UCS4 c) | 
 |                 Py_UCS4* Py_UCS4_strrchr(const Py_UCS4 *s, Py_UCS4 c) | 
 |  | 
 |    These utility functions work on strings of :c:type:`Py_UCS4` characters and | 
 |    otherwise behave like the C standard library functions with the same name. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. _builtincodecs: | 
 |  | 
 | Built-in Codecs | 
 | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ | 
 |  | 
 | Python provides a set of built-in codecs which are written in C for speed. All of | 
 | these codecs are directly usable via the following functions. | 
 |  | 
 | Many of the following APIs take two arguments encoding and errors, and they | 
 | have the same semantics as the ones of the built-in :func:`str` string object | 
 | constructor. | 
 |  | 
 | Setting encoding to *NULL* causes the default encoding to be used | 
 | which is ASCII.  The file system calls should use | 
 | :c:func:`PyUnicode_FSConverter` for encoding file names. This uses the | 
 | variable :c:data:`Py_FileSystemDefaultEncoding` internally. This | 
 | variable should be treated as read-only: on some systems, it will be a | 
 | pointer to a static string, on others, it will change at run-time | 
 | (such as when the application invokes setlocale). | 
 |  | 
 | Error handling is set by errors which may also be set to *NULL* meaning to use | 
 | the default handling defined for the codec.  Default error handling for all | 
 | built-in codecs is "strict" (:exc:`ValueError` is raised). | 
 |  | 
 | The codecs all use a similar interface.  Only deviation from the following | 
 | generic ones are documented for simplicity. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Generic Codecs | 
 | """""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the generic codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Decode(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *encoding, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the encoded string *s*. | 
 |    *encoding* and *errors* have the same meaning as the parameters of the same name | 
 |    in the :func:`str` built-in function.  The codec to be used is looked up | 
 |    using the Python codec registry.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsEncodedString(PyObject *unicode, \ | 
 |                               const char *encoding, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object and return the result as Python bytes object. | 
 |    *encoding* and *errors* have the same meaning as the parameters of the same | 
 |    name in the Unicode :meth:`~str.encode` method. The codec to be used is looked up | 
 |    using the Python codec registry. Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Encode(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *encoding, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer *s* of the given *size* and return a Python | 
 |    bytes object.  *encoding* and *errors* have the same meaning as the | 
 |    parameters of the same name in the Unicode :meth:`~str.encode` method.  The codec | 
 |    to be used is looked up using the Python codec registry.  Return *NULL* if an | 
 |    exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsEncodedString`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | UTF-8 Codecs | 
 | """""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the UTF-8 codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF8(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the UTF-8 encoded string | 
 |    *s*. Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF8Stateful(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, Py_ssize_t *consumed) | 
 |  | 
 |    If *consumed* is *NULL*, behave like :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF8`. If | 
 |    *consumed* is not *NULL*, trailing incomplete UTF-8 byte sequences will not be | 
 |    treated as an error. Those bytes will not be decoded and the number of bytes | 
 |    that have been decoded will be stored in *consumed*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsUTF8String(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using UTF-8 and return the result as Python bytes | 
 |    object.  Error handling is "strict".  Return *NULL* if an exception was | 
 |    raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: char* PyUnicode_AsUTF8AndSize(PyObject *unicode, Py_ssize_t *size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a pointer to the UTF-8 encoding of the Unicode object, and | 
 |    store the size of the encoded representation (in bytes) in *size*.  The | 
 |    *size* argument can be *NULL*; in this case no size will be stored.  The | 
 |    returned buffer always has an extra null byte appended (not included in | 
 |    *size*), regardless of whether there are any other null code points. | 
 |  | 
 |    In the case of an error, *NULL* is returned with an exception set and no | 
 |    *size* is stored. | 
 |  | 
 |    This caches the UTF-8 representation of the string in the Unicode object, and | 
 |    subsequent calls will return a pointer to the same buffer.  The caller is not | 
 |    responsible for deallocating the buffer. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: char* PyUnicode_AsUTF8(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    As :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUTF8AndSize`, but does not store the size. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeUTF8(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer *s* of the given *size* using UTF-8 and | 
 |    return a Python bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUTF8String` or :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUTF8AndSize`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | UTF-32 Codecs | 
 | """"""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the UTF-32 codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF32(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int *byteorder) | 
 |  | 
 |    Decode *size* bytes from a UTF-32 encoded buffer string and return the | 
 |    corresponding Unicode object.  *errors* (if non-*NULL*) defines the error | 
 |    handling. It defaults to "strict". | 
 |  | 
 |    If *byteorder* is non-*NULL*, the decoder starts decoding using the given byte | 
 |    order:: | 
 |  | 
 |       *byteorder == -1: little endian | 
 |       *byteorder == 0:  native order | 
 |       *byteorder == 1:  big endian | 
 |  | 
 |    If ``*byteorder`` is zero, and the first four bytes of the input data are a | 
 |    byte order mark (BOM), the decoder switches to this byte order and the BOM is | 
 |    not copied into the resulting Unicode string.  If ``*byteorder`` is ``-1`` or | 
 |    ``1``, any byte order mark is copied to the output. | 
 |  | 
 |    After completion, *\*byteorder* is set to the current byte order at the end | 
 |    of input data. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *byteorder* is *NULL*, the codec starts in native order mode. | 
 |  | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF32Stateful(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int *byteorder, Py_ssize_t *consumed) | 
 |  | 
 |    If *consumed* is *NULL*, behave like :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF32`. If | 
 |    *consumed* is not *NULL*, :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF32Stateful` will not treat | 
 |    trailing incomplete UTF-32 byte sequences (such as a number of bytes not divisible | 
 |    by four) as an error. Those bytes will not be decoded and the number of bytes | 
 |    that have been decoded will be stored in *consumed*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsUTF32String(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a Python byte string using the UTF-32 encoding in native byte | 
 |    order. The string always starts with a BOM mark.  Error handling is "strict". | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeUTF32(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int byteorder) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a Python bytes object holding the UTF-32 encoded value of the Unicode | 
 |    data in *s*.  Output is written according to the following byte order:: | 
 |  | 
 |       byteorder == -1: little endian | 
 |       byteorder == 0:  native byte order (writes a BOM mark) | 
 |       byteorder == 1:  big endian | 
 |  | 
 |    If byteorder is ``0``, the output string will always start with the Unicode BOM | 
 |    mark (U+FEFF). In the other two modes, no BOM mark is prepended. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *Py_UNICODE_WIDE* is not defined, surrogate pairs will be output | 
 |    as a single code point. | 
 |  | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUTF32String`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | UTF-16 Codecs | 
 | """"""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the UTF-16 codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF16(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int *byteorder) | 
 |  | 
 |    Decode *size* bytes from a UTF-16 encoded buffer string and return the | 
 |    corresponding Unicode object.  *errors* (if non-*NULL*) defines the error | 
 |    handling. It defaults to "strict". | 
 |  | 
 |    If *byteorder* is non-*NULL*, the decoder starts decoding using the given byte | 
 |    order:: | 
 |  | 
 |       *byteorder == -1: little endian | 
 |       *byteorder == 0:  native order | 
 |       *byteorder == 1:  big endian | 
 |  | 
 |    If ``*byteorder`` is zero, and the first two bytes of the input data are a | 
 |    byte order mark (BOM), the decoder switches to this byte order and the BOM is | 
 |    not copied into the resulting Unicode string.  If ``*byteorder`` is ``-1`` or | 
 |    ``1``, any byte order mark is copied to the output (where it will result in | 
 |    either a ``\ufeff`` or a ``\ufffe`` character). | 
 |  | 
 |    After completion, *\*byteorder* is set to the current byte order at the end | 
 |    of input data. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *byteorder* is *NULL*, the codec starts in native order mode. | 
 |  | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF16Stateful(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int *byteorder, Py_ssize_t *consumed) | 
 |  | 
 |    If *consumed* is *NULL*, behave like :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF16`. If | 
 |    *consumed* is not *NULL*, :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF16Stateful` will not treat | 
 |    trailing incomplete UTF-16 byte sequences (such as an odd number of bytes or a | 
 |    split surrogate pair) as an error. Those bytes will not be decoded and the | 
 |    number of bytes that have been decoded will be stored in *consumed*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsUTF16String(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a Python byte string using the UTF-16 encoding in native byte | 
 |    order. The string always starts with a BOM mark.  Error handling is "strict". | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeUTF16(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int byteorder) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a Python bytes object holding the UTF-16 encoded value of the Unicode | 
 |    data in *s*.  Output is written according to the following byte order:: | 
 |  | 
 |       byteorder == -1: little endian | 
 |       byteorder == 0:  native byte order (writes a BOM mark) | 
 |       byteorder == 1:  big endian | 
 |  | 
 |    If byteorder is ``0``, the output string will always start with the Unicode BOM | 
 |    mark (U+FEFF). In the other two modes, no BOM mark is prepended. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *Py_UNICODE_WIDE* is defined, a single :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` value may get | 
 |    represented as a surrogate pair. If it is not defined, each :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` | 
 |    values is interpreted as an UCS-2 character. | 
 |  | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUTF16String`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | UTF-7 Codecs | 
 | """""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the UTF-7 codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF7(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the UTF-7 encoded string | 
 |    *s*.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUTF7Stateful(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, Py_ssize_t *consumed) | 
 |  | 
 |    If *consumed* is *NULL*, behave like :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeUTF7`.  If | 
 |    *consumed* is not *NULL*, trailing incomplete UTF-7 base-64 sections will not | 
 |    be treated as an error.  Those bytes will not be decoded and the number of | 
 |    bytes that have been decoded will be stored in *consumed*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeUTF7(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               int base64SetO, int base64WhiteSpace, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given size using UTF-7 and | 
 |    return a Python bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    If *base64SetO* is nonzero, "Set O" (punctuation that has no otherwise | 
 |    special meaning) will be encoded in base-64.  If *base64WhiteSpace* is | 
 |    nonzero, whitespace will be encoded in base-64.  Both are set to zero for the | 
 |    Python "utf-7" codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. XXX replace with what? | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Unicode-Escape Codecs | 
 | """"""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the "Unicode Escape" codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeUnicodeEscape(const char *s, \ | 
 |                               Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the Unicode-Escape encoded | 
 |    string *s*.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsUnicodeEscapeString(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using Unicode-Escape and return the result as Python | 
 |    string object.  Error handling is "strict". Return *NULL* if an exception was | 
 |    raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeUnicodeEscape(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using Unicode-Escape and | 
 |    return a Python string object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the | 
 |    codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsUnicodeEscapeString`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Raw-Unicode-Escape Codecs | 
 | """"""""""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the "Raw Unicode Escape" codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeRawUnicodeEscape(const char *s, \ | 
 |                               Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the Raw-Unicode-Escape | 
 |    encoded string *s*.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsRawUnicodeEscapeString(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using Raw-Unicode-Escape and return the result as | 
 |    Python string object. Error handling is "strict". Return *NULL* if an exception | 
 |    was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeRawUnicodeEscape(const Py_UNICODE *s, \ | 
 |                               Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using Raw-Unicode-Escape | 
 |    and return a Python string object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsRawUnicodeEscapeString`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Latin-1 Codecs | 
 | """""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the Latin-1 codec APIs: Latin-1 corresponds to the first 256 Unicode | 
 | ordinals and only these are accepted by the codecs during encoding. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeLatin1(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the Latin-1 encoded string | 
 |    *s*.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsLatin1String(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using Latin-1 and return the result as Python bytes | 
 |    object.  Error handling is "strict".  Return *NULL* if an exception was | 
 |    raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeLatin1(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using Latin-1 and | 
 |    return a Python bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsLatin1String`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | ASCII Codecs | 
 | """""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the ASCII codec APIs.  Only 7-bit ASCII data is accepted. All other | 
 | codes generate errors. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeASCII(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the ASCII encoded string | 
 |    *s*.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsASCIIString(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using ASCII and return the result as Python bytes | 
 |    object.  Error handling is "strict".  Return *NULL* if an exception was | 
 |    raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeASCII(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using ASCII and | 
 |    return a Python bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by | 
 |    the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsASCIIString`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Character Map Codecs | 
 | """""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | This codec is special in that it can be used to implement many different codecs | 
 | (and this is in fact what was done to obtain most of the standard codecs | 
 | included in the :mod:`encodings` package). The codec uses mapping to encode and | 
 | decode characters. | 
 |  | 
 | Decoding mappings must map single string characters to single Unicode | 
 | characters, integers (which are then interpreted as Unicode ordinals) or None | 
 | (meaning "undefined mapping" and causing an error). | 
 |  | 
 | Encoding mappings must map single Unicode characters to single string | 
 | characters, integers (which are then interpreted as Latin-1 ordinals) or None | 
 | (meaning "undefined mapping" and causing an error). | 
 |  | 
 | The mapping objects provided must only support the __getitem__ mapping | 
 | interface. | 
 |  | 
 | If a character lookup fails with a LookupError, the character is copied as-is | 
 | meaning that its ordinal value will be interpreted as Unicode or Latin-1 ordinal | 
 | resp. Because of this, mappings only need to contain those mappings which map | 
 | characters to different code points. | 
 |  | 
 | These are the mapping codec APIs: | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeCharmap(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               PyObject *mapping, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the encoded string *s* using | 
 |    the given *mapping* object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the | 
 |    codec. If *mapping* is *NULL* latin-1 decoding will be done. Else it can be a | 
 |    dictionary mapping byte or a unicode string, which is treated as a lookup table. | 
 |    Byte values greater that the length of the string and U+FFFE "characters" are | 
 |    treated as "undefined mapping". | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsCharmapString(PyObject *unicode, PyObject *mapping) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using the given *mapping* object and return the result | 
 |    as Python string object.  Error handling is "strict".  Return *NULL* if an | 
 |    exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 | The following codec API is special in that maps Unicode to Unicode. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_TranslateCharmap(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               PyObject *table, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Translate a :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* by applying a | 
 |    character mapping *table* to it and return the resulting Unicode object.  Return | 
 |    *NULL* when an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    The *mapping* table must map Unicode ordinal integers to Unicode ordinal | 
 |    integers or None (causing deletion of the character). | 
 |  | 
 |    Mapping tables need only provide the :meth:`__getitem__` interface; dictionaries | 
 |    and sequences work well.  Unmapped character ordinals (ones which cause a | 
 |    :exc:`LookupError`) are left untouched and are copied as-is. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. XXX replace with what? | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeCharmap(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, \ | 
 |                               PyObject *mapping, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using the given | 
 |    *mapping* object and return a Python string object. Return *NULL* if an | 
 |    exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsCharmapString`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | MBCS codecs for Windows | 
 | """"""""""""""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 | These are the MBCS codec APIs. They are currently only available on Windows and | 
 | use the Win32 MBCS converters to implement the conversions.  Note that MBCS (or | 
 | DBCS) is a class of encodings, not just one.  The target encoding is defined by | 
 | the user settings on the machine running the codec. | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeMBCS(const char *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Create a Unicode object by decoding *size* bytes of the MBCS encoded string *s*. | 
 |    Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_DecodeMBCSStateful(const char *s, int size, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors, int *consumed) | 
 |  | 
 |    If *consumed* is *NULL*, behave like :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeMBCS`. If | 
 |    *consumed* is not *NULL*, :c:func:`PyUnicode_DecodeMBCSStateful` will not decode | 
 |    trailing lead byte and the number of bytes that have been decoded will be stored | 
 |    in *consumed*. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_AsMBCSString(PyObject *unicode) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode a Unicode object using MBCS and return the result as Python bytes | 
 |    object.  Error handling is "strict".  Return *NULL* if an exception was | 
 |    raised by the codec. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeCodePage(int code_page, PyObject *unicode, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the Unicode object using the specified code page and return a Python | 
 |    bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the codec. Use | 
 |    :c:data:`CP_ACP` code page to get the MBCS encoder. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_EncodeMBCS(const Py_UNICODE *s, Py_ssize_t size, const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Encode the :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` buffer of the given *size* using MBCS and return | 
 |    a Python bytes object.  Return *NULL* if an exception was raised by the | 
 |    codec. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. deprecated-removed:: 3.3 4.0 | 
 |       Part of the old-style :c:type:`Py_UNICODE` API; please migrate to using | 
 |       :c:func:`PyUnicode_AsMBCSString` or :c:func:`PyUnicode_EncodeCodePage`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | Methods & Slots | 
 | """"""""""""""" | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. _unicodemethodsandslots: | 
 |  | 
 | Methods and Slot Functions | 
 | ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ | 
 |  | 
 | The following APIs are capable of handling Unicode objects and strings on input | 
 | (we refer to them as strings in the descriptions) and return Unicode objects or | 
 | integers as appropriate. | 
 |  | 
 | They all return *NULL* or ``-1`` if an exception occurs. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Concat(PyObject *left, PyObject *right) | 
 |  | 
 |    Concat two strings giving a new Unicode string. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Split(PyObject *s, PyObject *sep, Py_ssize_t maxsplit) | 
 |  | 
 |    Split a string giving a list of Unicode strings.  If *sep* is *NULL*, splitting | 
 |    will be done at all whitespace substrings.  Otherwise, splits occur at the given | 
 |    separator.  At most *maxsplit* splits will be done.  If negative, no limit is | 
 |    set.  Separators are not included in the resulting list. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Splitlines(PyObject *s, int keepend) | 
 |  | 
 |    Split a Unicode string at line breaks, returning a list of Unicode strings. | 
 |    CRLF is considered to be one line break.  If *keepend* is 0, the Line break | 
 |    characters are not included in the resulting strings. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Translate(PyObject *str, PyObject *table, \ | 
 |                               const char *errors) | 
 |  | 
 |    Translate a string by applying a character mapping table to it and return the | 
 |    resulting Unicode object. | 
 |  | 
 |    The mapping table must map Unicode ordinal integers to Unicode ordinal integers | 
 |    or None (causing deletion of the character). | 
 |  | 
 |    Mapping tables need only provide the :meth:`__getitem__` interface; dictionaries | 
 |    and sequences work well.  Unmapped character ordinals (ones which cause a | 
 |    :exc:`LookupError`) are left untouched and are copied as-is. | 
 |  | 
 |    *errors* has the usual meaning for codecs. It may be *NULL* which indicates to | 
 |    use the default error handling. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Join(PyObject *separator, PyObject *seq) | 
 |  | 
 |    Join a sequence of strings using the given *separator* and return the resulting | 
 |    Unicode string. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_Tailmatch(PyObject *str, PyObject *substr, \ | 
 |                         Py_ssize_t start, Py_ssize_t end, int direction) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return 1 if *substr* matches ``str[start:end]`` at the given tail end | 
 |    (*direction* == -1 means to do a prefix match, *direction* == 1 a suffix match), | 
 |    0 otherwise. Return ``-1`` if an error occurred. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_Find(PyObject *str, PyObject *substr, \ | 
 |                                Py_ssize_t start, Py_ssize_t end, int direction) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the first position of *substr* in ``str[start:end]`` using the given | 
 |    *direction* (*direction* == 1 means to do a forward search, *direction* == -1 a | 
 |    backward search).  The return value is the index of the first match; a value of | 
 |    ``-1`` indicates that no match was found, and ``-2`` indicates that an error | 
 |    occurred and an exception has been set. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_FindChar(PyObject *str, Py_UCS4 ch, \ | 
 |                                Py_ssize_t start, Py_ssize_t end, int direction) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the first position of the character *ch* in ``str[start:end]`` using | 
 |    the given *direction* (*direction* == 1 means to do a forward search, | 
 |    *direction* == -1 a backward search).  The return value is the index of the | 
 |    first match; a value of ``-1`` indicates that no match was found, and ``-2`` | 
 |    indicates that an error occurred and an exception has been set. | 
 |  | 
 |    .. versionadded:: 3.3 | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: Py_ssize_t PyUnicode_Count(PyObject *str, PyObject *substr, \ | 
 |                                Py_ssize_t start, Py_ssize_t end) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return the number of non-overlapping occurrences of *substr* in | 
 |    ``str[start:end]``.  Return ``-1`` if an error occurred. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Replace(PyObject *str, PyObject *substr, \ | 
 |                               PyObject *replstr, Py_ssize_t maxcount) | 
 |  | 
 |    Replace at most *maxcount* occurrences of *substr* in *str* with *replstr* and | 
 |    return the resulting Unicode object. *maxcount* == -1 means replace all | 
 |    occurrences. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_Compare(PyObject *left, PyObject *right) | 
 |  | 
 |    Compare two strings and return -1, 0, 1 for less than, equal, and greater than, | 
 |    respectively. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_CompareWithASCIIString(PyObject *uni, const char *string) | 
 |  | 
 |    Compare a unicode object, *uni*, with *string* and return -1, 0, 1 for less | 
 |    than, equal, and greater than, respectively. It is best to pass only | 
 |    ASCII-encoded strings, but the function interprets the input string as | 
 |    ISO-8859-1 if it contains non-ASCII characters. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_RichCompare(PyObject *left,  PyObject *right,  int op) | 
 |  | 
 |    Rich compare two unicode strings and return one of the following: | 
 |  | 
 |    * ``NULL`` in case an exception was raised | 
 |    * :const:`Py_True` or :const:`Py_False` for successful comparisons | 
 |    * :const:`Py_NotImplemented` in case the type combination is unknown | 
 |  | 
 |    Note that :const:`Py_EQ` and :const:`Py_NE` comparisons can cause a | 
 |    :exc:`UnicodeWarning` in case the conversion of the arguments to Unicode fails | 
 |    with a :exc:`UnicodeDecodeError`. | 
 |  | 
 |    Possible values for *op* are :const:`Py_GT`, :const:`Py_GE`, :const:`Py_EQ`, | 
 |    :const:`Py_NE`, :const:`Py_LT`, and :const:`Py_LE`. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_Format(PyObject *format, PyObject *args) | 
 |  | 
 |    Return a new string object from *format* and *args*; this is analogous to | 
 |    ``format % args``. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: int PyUnicode_Contains(PyObject *container, PyObject *element) | 
 |  | 
 |    Check whether *element* is contained in *container* and return true or false | 
 |    accordingly. | 
 |  | 
 |    *element* has to coerce to a one element Unicode string. ``-1`` is returned | 
 |    if there was an error. | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: void PyUnicode_InternInPlace(PyObject **string) | 
 |  | 
 |    Intern the argument *\*string* in place.  The argument must be the address of a | 
 |    pointer variable pointing to a Python unicode string object.  If there is an | 
 |    existing interned string that is the same as *\*string*, it sets *\*string* to | 
 |    it (decrementing the reference count of the old string object and incrementing | 
 |    the reference count of the interned string object), otherwise it leaves | 
 |    *\*string* alone and interns it (incrementing its reference count). | 
 |    (Clarification: even though there is a lot of talk about reference counts, think | 
 |    of this function as reference-count-neutral; you own the object after the call | 
 |    if and only if you owned it before the call.) | 
 |  | 
 |  | 
 | .. c:function:: PyObject* PyUnicode_InternFromString(const char *v) | 
 |  | 
 |    A combination of :c:func:`PyUnicode_FromString` and | 
 |    :c:func:`PyUnicode_InternInPlace`, returning either a new unicode string | 
 |    object that has been interned, or a new ("owned") reference to an earlier | 
 |    interned string object with the same value. |