Class DateFormat

All Implemented Interfaces:
Serializable, Cloneable
Direct Known Subclasses:
SimpleDateFormat

public abstract class DateFormat extends UFormat
.

DateFormat is an abstract class for date/time formatting subclasses which formats and parses dates or time in a language-independent manner. The date/time formatting subclass, such as SimpleDateFormat, allows for formatting (i.e., date -> text), parsing (text -> date), and normalization. The date is represented as a Date object or as the milliseconds since January 1, 1970, 00:00:00 GMT.

DateFormat helps you to format and parse dates for any locale. Your code can be completely independent of the locale conventions for months, days of the week, or even the calendar format: lunar vs. solar. It provides many class methods for obtaining default date/time formatters based on the default for a given locale and a number of formatting styles or arbitrary "skeletons".

  1. The formatting styles include FULL, LONG, MEDIUM, and SHORT. More detail and examples of using these styles are provided in the method descriptions.
  2. The formatting styles only cover a fraction of the necessary usage. You often need to have just certain combinations of fields, like Month and Year, but have it to be formatted appropriate to a given locale. This is done using the (misnamed) getPatternInstance() method, supplying a skeleton. There are a number of constants that have common pre-defined skeletons, such as MINUTE_SECOND for something like "13:45" or YEAR_ABBR_MONTH for something like "Sept 2012".

To format a date for the current Locale, use one of the static factory methods:

 myString = DateFormat.getDateInstance().format(myDate);
 myString = DateFormat.getPatternInstance(DateFormat.YEAR_ABBR_MONTH).format(myDate);
 

If you are formatting multiple numbers, it is more efficient to get the format and use it multiple times so that the system doesn't have to fetch the information about the local language and country conventions multiple times.

 DateFormat df = DateFormat.getDateInstance();
 for (int i = 0; i < a.length; ++i) {
     output.println(df.format(myDate[i]) + "; ");
 }
 

To format a date for a different Locale, specify it in the call to getDateInstance().

 DateFormat df = DateFormat.getDateInstance(DateFormat.LONG, Locale.FRANCE);
 

You can use a DateFormat to parse also.

 myDate = df.parse(myString);
 

There are many static factory methods available. Use getDateInstance to get the normal date format for that country. Use getTimeInstance to get the time format for that country. Use getDateTimeInstance to get a date and time format. You can pass in different options to these factory methods to control the length of the result; from SHORT to MEDIUM to LONG to FULL. The exact result depends on the locale, but generally:

  • SHORT is completely numeric, such as 12.13.52 or 3:30pm
  • MEDIUM is longer, such as Jan 12, 1952
  • LONG is longer, such as January 12, 1952 or 3:30:32pm
  • FULL is pretty completely specified, such as Tuesday, April 12, 1952 AD or 3:30:42pm PST.

Use getPatternInstance to format with a skeleton. Typically this is with a predefined skeleton, like YEAR_ABBR_MONTH for something like "Sept 2012". If you don't want to use one of the predefined skeletons, you can supply your own. The skeletons are like the patterns in SimpleDateFormat, except they:

  1. only keep the field pattern letter and ignore all other parts in a pattern, such as space, punctuation, and string literals.
  2. are independent of the order of fields.
  3. ignore certain differences in the field's pattern letter length:
    1. For those non-digit calendar fields, the pattern letter length is important, such as MMM, MMMM, and MMMMM; E and EEEE, and the field's pattern letter length is honored.
    2. For the digit calendar fields, such as M or MM, d or dd, yy or yyyy, the field pattern length is ignored and the best match, which is defined in date time patterns, will be returned without honor the field pattern letter length in skeleton.

You can also set the time zone on the format if you wish. If you want even more control over the format or parsing, (or want to give your users more control), you can try casting the DateFormat you get from the factory methods to a SimpleDateFormat. This will work for the majority of countries; just remember to put it in a try block in case you encounter an unusual one.

You can also use forms of the parse and format methods with ParsePosition and FieldPosition to allow you to

  • progressively parse through pieces of a string.
  • align any particular field, or find out where it is for selection on the screen.

Synchronization

Date formats are not synchronized. It is recommended to create separate format instances for each thread. If multiple threads access a format concurrently, it must be synchronized externally.
Author:
Mark Davis, Chen-Lieh Huang, Alan Liu
See Also:
  • Field Details

    • calendar

      protected Calendar calendar
      The calendar that DateFormat uses to produce the time field values needed to implement date and time formatting. Subclasses should initialize this to a calendar appropriate for the locale associated with this DateFormat.
    • numberFormat

      protected NumberFormat numberFormat
      The number formatter that DateFormat uses to format numbers in dates and times. Subclasses should initialize this to a number format appropriate for the locale associated with this DateFormat.
    • ERA_FIELD

      public static final int ERA_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'G' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ERA field.
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    • YEAR_FIELD

      public static final int YEAR_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'y' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.YEAR field.
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    • MONTH_FIELD

      public static final int MONTH_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'M' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MONTH field.
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    • DATE_FIELD

      public static final int DATE_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'd' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DATE field.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_OF_DAY1_FIELD

      public static final int HOUR_OF_DAY1_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'k' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY field. HOUR_OF_DAY1_FIELD is used for the one-based 24-hour clock. For example, 23:59 + 01:00 results in 24:59.
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    • HOUR_OF_DAY0_FIELD

      public static final int HOUR_OF_DAY0_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'H' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.HOUR_OF_DAY field. HOUR_OF_DAY0_FIELD is used for the zero-based 24-hour clock. For example, 23:59 + 01:00 results in 00:59.
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    • MINUTE_FIELD

      public static final int MINUTE_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'm' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MINUTE field.
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    • SECOND_FIELD

      public static final int SECOND_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 's' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.SECOND field.
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    • FRACTIONAL_SECOND_FIELD

      public static final int FRACTIONAL_SECOND_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'S' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MILLISECOND field. Note: Time formats that use 'S' can display a maximum of three significant digits for fractional seconds, corresponding to millisecond resolution and a fractional seconds sub-pattern of SSS. If the sub-pattern is S or SS, the fractional seconds value will be truncated (not rounded) to the number of display places specified. If the fractional seconds sub-pattern is longer than SSS, the additional display places will be filled with zeros.
      See Also:
    • MILLISECOND_FIELD

      public static final int MILLISECOND_FIELD
      Alias for FRACTIONAL_SECOND_FIELD.
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    • DAY_OF_WEEK_FIELD

      public static final int DAY_OF_WEEK_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'E' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DAY_OF_WEEK field.
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    • DAY_OF_YEAR_FIELD

      public static final int DAY_OF_YEAR_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'D' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DAY_OF_YEAR field.
      See Also:
    • DAY_OF_WEEK_IN_MONTH_FIELD

      public static final int DAY_OF_WEEK_IN_MONTH_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'F' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DAY_OF_WEEK_IN_MONTH field.
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    • WEEK_OF_YEAR_FIELD

      public static final int WEEK_OF_YEAR_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'w' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR field.
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    • WEEK_OF_MONTH_FIELD

      public static final int WEEK_OF_MONTH_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'W' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.WEEK_OF_MONTH field.
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    • AM_PM_FIELD

      public static final int AM_PM_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'a' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.AM_PM field.
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    • HOUR1_FIELD

      public static final int HOUR1_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'h' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.HOUR field. HOUR1_FIELD is used for the one-based 12-hour clock. For example, 11:30 PM + 1 hour results in 12:30 AM.
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    • HOUR0_FIELD

      public static final int HOUR0_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'K' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.HOUR field. HOUR0_FIELD is used for the zero-based 12-hour clock. For example, 11:30 PM + 1 hour results in 00:30 AM.
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    • TIMEZONE_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'z' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields.
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    • YEAR_WOY_FIELD

      public static final int YEAR_WOY_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'Y' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.YEAR_WOY field.
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    • DOW_LOCAL_FIELD

      public static final int DOW_LOCAL_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'e' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DOW_LOCAL field.
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    • EXTENDED_YEAR_FIELD

      public static final int EXTENDED_YEAR_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'u' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.EXTENDED_YEAR field.
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    • JULIAN_DAY_FIELD

      public static final int JULIAN_DAY_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'g' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.JULIAN_DAY field.
      See Also:
    • MILLISECONDS_IN_DAY_FIELD

      public static final int MILLISECONDS_IN_DAY_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'A' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MILLISECONDS_IN_DAY field.
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    • TIMEZONE_RFC_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_RFC_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'Z' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields.
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    • TIMEZONE_GENERIC_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_GENERIC_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'v' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields. This displays the generic zone name, if available.
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    • STANDALONE_DAY_FIELD

      public static final int STANDALONE_DAY_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'c' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.DAY_OF_WEEK field. This displays the stand alone day name, if available.
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    • STANDALONE_MONTH_FIELD

      public static final int STANDALONE_MONTH_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'L' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MONTH field. This displays the stand alone month name, if available.
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    • QUARTER_FIELD

      public static final int QUARTER_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'Q' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MONTH field. This displays the quarter.
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    • STANDALONE_QUARTER_FIELD

      public static final int STANDALONE_QUARTER_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'q' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.MONTH field. This displays the stand alone quarter, if available.
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    • TIMEZONE_SPECIAL_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_SPECIAL_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'V' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields. This displays the fallback timezone name when VVVV is specified, and the short standard or daylight timezone name ignoring commonlyUsed when a single V is specified.
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    • YEAR_NAME_FIELD

      public static final int YEAR_NAME_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'U' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.YEAR field. This displays the cyclic year name, if available.
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    • TIMEZONE_LOCALIZED_GMT_OFFSET_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_LOCALIZED_GMT_OFFSET_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'O' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields. This displays the localized GMT format.
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    • TIMEZONE_ISO_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_ISO_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'X' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields. This displays the ISO 8601 local time offset format or UTC indicator ("Z").
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    • TIMEZONE_ISO_LOCAL_FIELD

      public static final int TIMEZONE_ISO_LOCAL_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'x' field alignment, corresponding to the Calendar.ZONE_OFFSET and Calendar.DST_OFFSET fields. This displays the ISO 8601 local time offset format.
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    • AM_PM_MIDNIGHT_NOON_FIELD

      public static final int AM_PM_MIDNIGHT_NOON_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'b' field alignment. No related Calendar field. This displays the fixed day period (am/pm/midnight/noon).
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    • FLEXIBLE_DAY_PERIOD_FIELD

      public static final int FLEXIBLE_DAY_PERIOD_FIELD
      FieldPosition selector for 'B' field alignment. No related Calendar field. This displays the flexible day period.
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    • TIME_SEPARATOR

      @Deprecated public static final int TIME_SEPARATOR
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      FieldPosition selector time separator, no related Calendar field. No pattern character is currently defined for this.
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    • FIELD_COUNT

      @Deprecated public static final int FIELD_COUNT
      Deprecated.
      ICU 58 The numeric value may change over time, see ICU ticket #12420.
      Number of FieldPosition selectors for DateFormat. Valid selectors range from 0 to FIELD_COUNT-1.
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    • NONE

      public static final int NONE
      Constant for empty style pattern.
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    • FULL

      public static final int FULL
      Constant for full style pattern.
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    • LONG

      public static final int LONG
      Constant for long style pattern.
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    • MEDIUM

      public static final int MEDIUM
      Constant for medium style pattern.
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    • SHORT

      public static final int SHORT
      Constant for short style pattern.
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    • DEFAULT

      public static final int DEFAULT
      Constant for default style pattern. Its value is MEDIUM.
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    • RELATIVE

      public static final int RELATIVE
      Constant for relative style mask.
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    • RELATIVE_FULL

      public static final int RELATIVE_FULL
      Constant for relative full style pattern.
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    • RELATIVE_LONG

      public static final int RELATIVE_LONG
      Constant for relative style pattern.
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    • RELATIVE_MEDIUM

      public static final int RELATIVE_MEDIUM
      Constant for relative style pattern.
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    • RELATIVE_SHORT

      public static final int RELATIVE_SHORT
      Constant for relative style pattern.
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    • RELATIVE_DEFAULT

      public static final int RELATIVE_DEFAULT
      Constant for relative default style pattern.
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    • YEAR

      public static final String YEAR
      Constant for date skeleton with year.
      See Also:
    • QUARTER

      public static final String QUARTER
      Constant for date skeleton with quarter.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_QUARTER

      public static final String ABBR_QUARTER
      Constant for date skeleton with abbreviated quarter.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_QUARTER

      public static final String YEAR_QUARTER
      Constant for date skeleton with year and quarter.
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    • YEAR_ABBR_QUARTER

      public static final String YEAR_ABBR_QUARTER
      Constant for date skeleton with year and abbreviated quarter.
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    • MONTH

      public static final String MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with month.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_MONTH

      public static final String ABBR_MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with abbreviated month.
      See Also:
    • NUM_MONTH

      public static final String NUM_MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with numeric month.
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    • YEAR_MONTH

      public static final String YEAR_MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with year and month.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_ABBR_MONTH

      public static final String YEAR_ABBR_MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with year and abbreviated month.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_NUM_MONTH

      public static final String YEAR_NUM_MONTH
      Constant for date skeleton with year and numeric month.
      See Also:
    • DAY

      public static final String DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with day.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_MONTH_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, month, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_ABBR_MONTH_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_ABBR_MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, abbreviated month, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_NUM_MONTH_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_NUM_MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, numeric month, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • WEEKDAY

      public static final String WEEKDAY
      Constant for date skeleton with weekday.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_WEEKDAY

      public static final String ABBR_WEEKDAY
      Constant for date skeleton with abbreviated weekday.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_ABBR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_ABBR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, abbreviated month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • YEAR_NUM_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String YEAR_NUM_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with year, numeric month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • MONTH_DAY

      public static final String MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with long month and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • ABBR_MONTH_DAY

      public static final String ABBR_MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with abbreviated month and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • NUM_MONTH_DAY

      public static final String NUM_MONTH_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with numeric month and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • ABBR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String ABBR_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with abbreviated month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • NUM_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY

      public static final String NUM_MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY
      Constant for date skeleton with numeric month, weekday, and day. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • DATE_SKELETONS

      @Deprecated public static final List<String> DATE_SKELETONS
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      List of all of the date skeleton constants for iteration. Note that this is fragile; be sure to add any values that are added above.
    • HOUR

      public static final String HOUR
      Constant for date skeleton with hour, with the locale's preferred hour format (12 or 24).
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    • HOUR24

      public static final String HOUR24
      Constant for date skeleton with hour in 24-hour presentation.
      See Also:
    • MINUTE

      public static final String MINUTE
      Constant for date skeleton with minute.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_MINUTE

      public static final String HOUR_MINUTE
      Constant for date skeleton with hour and minute, with the locale's preferred hour format (12 or 24). Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • HOUR24_MINUTE

      public static final String HOUR24_MINUTE
      Constant for date skeleton with hour and minute in 24-hour presentation. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
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    • SECOND

      public static final String SECOND
      Constant for date skeleton with second.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_MINUTE_SECOND

      public static final String HOUR_MINUTE_SECOND
      Constant for date skeleton with hour, minute, and second, with the locale's preferred hour format (12 or 24). Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • HOUR24_MINUTE_SECOND

      public static final String HOUR24_MINUTE_SECOND
      Constant for date skeleton with hour, minute, and second in 24-hour presentation. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • MINUTE_SECOND

      public static final String MINUTE_SECOND
      Constant for date skeleton with minute and second. Used in combinations date + time, date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • TIME_SKELETONS

      @Deprecated public static final List<String> TIME_SKELETONS
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      List of all of the time skeleton constants for iteration. Note that this is fragile; be sure to add any values that are added above.
    • LOCATION_TZ

      public static final String LOCATION_TZ
      Constant for generic location format, such as Los Angeles Time; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • GENERIC_TZ

      public static final String GENERIC_TZ
      Constant for generic non-location format, such as Pacific Time; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_GENERIC_TZ

      public static final String ABBR_GENERIC_TZ
      Constant for generic non-location format, abbreviated if possible, such as PT; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • SPECIFIC_TZ

      public static final String SPECIFIC_TZ
      Constant for specific non-location format, such as Pacific Daylight Time; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_SPECIFIC_TZ

      public static final String ABBR_SPECIFIC_TZ
      Constant for specific non-location format, abbreviated if possible, such as PDT; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_UTC_TZ

      public static final String ABBR_UTC_TZ
      Constant for localized GMT/UTC format, such as GMT+8:00 or HPG-8:00; used in combinations date + time + zone, or time + zone.
      See Also:
    • ZONE_SKELETONS

      @Deprecated public static final List<String> ZONE_SKELETONS
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      List of all of the zone skeleton constants for iteration. Note that this is fragile; be sure to add any values that are added above.
    • STANDALONE_MONTH

      @Deprecated public static final String STANDALONE_MONTH
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use MONTH instead.
      Constant for date skeleton with standalone month.
      See Also:
    • ABBR_STANDALONE_MONTH

      @Deprecated public static final String ABBR_STANDALONE_MONTH
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use ABBR_MONTH instead.
      Constant for date skeleton with standalone abbreviated month.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_MINUTE_GENERIC_TZ

      @Deprecated public static final String HOUR_MINUTE_GENERIC_TZ
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use instead HOUR_MINUTE+ABBR_GENERIC_TZ or some other timezone presentation.
      Constant for date skeleton with hour, minute, and generic timezone.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_MINUTE_TZ

      @Deprecated public static final String HOUR_MINUTE_TZ
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use instead HOUR_MINUTE+ABBR_SPECIFIC_TZ or some other timezone presentation.
      Constant for date skeleton with hour, minute, and timezone.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_GENERIC_TZ

      @Deprecated public static final String HOUR_GENERIC_TZ
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use instead HOUR+ABBR_GENERIC_TZ or some other timezone presentation.
      Constant for date skeleton with hour and generic timezone.
      See Also:
    • HOUR_TZ

      @Deprecated public static final String HOUR_TZ
      Deprecated.
      ICU 50 Use instead HOUR+ABBR_SPECIFIC_TZ or some other timezone presentation.
      Constant for date skeleton with hour and timezone.
      See Also:
    • JP_ERA_2019_ROOT

      @Deprecated public static final String JP_ERA_2019_ROOT
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      Constant for Unicode string name of new (in 2019) Japanese calendar era, root/English abbreviated version (ASCII-range characters).
      See Also:
    • JP_ERA_2019_JA

      @Deprecated public static final String JP_ERA_2019_JA
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      Constant for Unicode string name of new (in 2019) Japanese calendar era, Japanese abbreviated version (Han, or fullwidth Latin for testing).
      See Also:
    • JP_ERA_2019_NARROW

      @Deprecated public static final String JP_ERA_2019_NARROW
      Deprecated.
      This API is ICU internal only.
      Constant for Unicode string name of new (in 2019) Japanese calendar era, root and Japanese narrow version (ASCII-range characters).
      See Also:
  • Constructor Details

    • DateFormat

      protected DateFormat()
      Creates a new date format.
  • Method Details

    • format

      public final StringBuffer format(Object obj, StringBuffer toAppendTo, FieldPosition fieldPosition)
      Formats a time object into a time string. Examples of time objects are a time value expressed in milliseconds and a Date object.
      Specified by:
      format in class Format
      Parameters:
      obj - must be a Number or a Date or a Calendar.
      toAppendTo - the string buffer for the returning time string.
      fieldPosition - keeps track of the position of the field within the returned string. On input: an alignment field, if desired. On output: the offsets of the alignment field. For example, given a time text "1996.07.10 AD at 15:08:56 PDT", if the given fieldPosition is DateFormat.YEAR_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 0 and 4, respectively. Notice that if the same time field appears more than once in a pattern, the fieldPosition will be set for the first occurrence of that time field. For instance, formatting a Date to the time string "1 PM PDT (Pacific Daylight Time)" using the pattern "h a z (zzzz)" and the alignment field DateFormat.TIMEZONE_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 5 and 8, respectively, for the first occurrence of the timezone pattern character 'z'.
      Returns:
      the formatted time string.
      See Also:
    • format

      public abstract StringBuffer format(Calendar cal, StringBuffer toAppendTo, FieldPosition fieldPosition)
      Formats a date into a date/time string.
      Parameters:
      cal - a Calendar set to the date and time to be formatted into a date/time string. When the calendar type is different from the internal calendar held by this DateFormat instance, the date and the time zone will be inherited from the input calendar, but other calendar field values will be calculated by the internal calendar.
      toAppendTo - the string buffer for the returning date/time string.
      fieldPosition - keeps track of the position of the field within the returned string. On input: an alignment field, if desired. On output: the offsets of the alignment field. For example, given a time text "1996.07.10 AD at 15:08:56 PDT", if the given fieldPosition is DateFormat.YEAR_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 0 and 4, respectively. Notice that if the same time field appears more than once in a pattern, the fieldPosition will be set for the first occurrence of that time field. For instance, formatting a Date to the time string "1 PM PDT (Pacific Daylight Time)" using the pattern "h a z (zzzz)" and the alignment field DateFormat.TIMEZONE_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 5 and 8, respectively, for the first occurrence of the timezone pattern character 'z'.
      Returns:
      the formatted date/time string.
    • format

      public StringBuffer format(Date date, StringBuffer toAppendTo, FieldPosition fieldPosition)
      Formats a Date into a date/time string.
      Parameters:
      date - a Date to be formatted into a date/time string.
      toAppendTo - the string buffer for the returning date/time string.
      fieldPosition - keeps track of the position of the field within the returned string. On input: an alignment field, if desired. On output: the offsets of the alignment field. For example, given a time text "1996.07.10 AD at 15:08:56 PDT", if the given fieldPosition is DateFormat.YEAR_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 0 and 4, respectively. Notice that if the same time field appears more than once in a pattern, the fieldPosition will be set for the first occurrence of that time field. For instance, formatting a Date to the time string "1 PM PDT (Pacific Daylight Time)" using the pattern "h a z (zzzz)" and the alignment field DateFormat.TIMEZONE_FIELD, the begin index and end index of fieldPosition will be set to 5 and 8, respectively, for the first occurrence of the timezone pattern character 'z'.
      Returns:
      the formatted date/time string.
    • format

      public final String format(Date date)
      Formats a Date into a date/time string.
      Parameters:
      date - the time value to be formatted into a time string.
      Returns:
      the formatted time string.
    • parse

      public Date parse(String text) throws ParseException
      Parses a date/time string. For example, a time text "07/10/96 4:5 PM, PDT" will be parsed into a Date that is equivalent to Date(837039928046). Parsing begins at the beginning of the string and proceeds as far as possible. Assuming no parse errors were encountered, this function doesn't return any information about how much of the string was consumed by the parsing. If you need that information, use a version of parse() that takes a ParsePosition.

      By default, parsing is lenient: If the input is not in the form used by this object's format method but can still be parsed as a date, then the parse succeeds. Clients may insist on strict adherence to the format by calling setLenient(false).

      Note that the normal date formats associated with some calendars - such as the Chinese lunar calendar - do not specify enough fields to enable dates to be parsed unambiguously. In the case of the Chinese lunar calendar, while the year within the current 60-year cycle is specified, the number of such cycles since the start date of the calendar (in the ERA field of the Calendar object) is not normally part of the format, and parsing may assume the wrong era. For cases such as this it is recommended that clients parse using the parse method that takes a Calendar with the Calendar passed in set to the current date, or to a date within the era/cycle that should be assumed if absent in the format.

      Parameters:
      text - The date/time string to be parsed
      Returns:
      A Date, or null if the input could not be parsed
      Throws:
      ParseException - If the given string cannot be parsed as a date.
      See Also:
    • parse

      public abstract void parse(String text, Calendar cal, ParsePosition pos)
      Parses a date/time string according to the given parse position. For example, a time text "07/10/96 4:5 PM, PDT" will be parsed into a Calendar that is equivalent to Date(837039928046). Before calling this method the caller should initialize the calendar in one of two ways (unless existing field information is to be kept): (1) clear the calendar, or (2) set the calendar to the current date (or to any date whose fields should be used to supply values that are missing in the parsed date). For example, Chinese calendar dates do not normally provide an era/cycle; in this case the calendar that is passed in should be set to a date within the era that should be assumed, normally the current era.

      By default, parsing is lenient: If the input is not in the form used by this object's format method but can still be parsed as a date, then the parse succeeds. Clients may insist on strict adherence to the format by calling setLenient(false).

      Parameters:
      text - The date/time string to be parsed
      cal - The calendar set on input to the date and time to be used for missing values in the date/time string being parsed, and set on output to the parsed date/time. In general, this should be initialized before calling this method - either cleared or set to the current date, depending on desired behavior. If this parse fails, the calendar may still have been modified. When the calendar type is different from the internal calendar held by this DateFormat instance, calendar field values will be parsed based on the internal calendar initialized with the time and the time zone taken from this calendar, then the parse result (time in milliseconds and time zone) will be set back to this calendar.
      pos - On input, the position at which to start parsing; on output, the position at which parsing terminated, or the start position if the parse failed.
      See Also:
    • parse

      public Date parse(String text, ParsePosition pos)
      Parses a date/time string according to the given parse position. For example, a time text "07/10/96 4:5 PM, PDT" will be parsed into a Date that is equivalent to Date(837039928046).

      By default, parsing is lenient: If the input is not in the form used by this object's format method but can still be parsed as a date, then the parse succeeds. Clients may insist on strict adherence to the format by calling setLenient(false).

      Note that the normal date formats associated with some calendars - such as the Chinese lunar calendar - do not specify enough fields to enable dates to be parsed unambiguously. In the case of the Chinese lunar calendar, while the year within the current 60-year cycle is specified, the number of such cycles since the start date of the calendar (in the ERA field of the Calendar object) is not normally part of the format, and parsing may assume the wrong era. For cases such as this it is recommended that clients parse using the parse method that takes a Calendar with the Calendar passed in set to the current date, or to a date within the era/cycle that should be assumed if absent in the format.

      Parameters:
      text - The date/time string to be parsed
      pos - On input, the position at which to start parsing; on output, the position at which parsing terminated, or the start position if the parse failed.
      Returns:
      A Date, or null if the input could not be parsed
      See Also:
    • parseObject

      public Object parseObject(String source, ParsePosition pos)
      Parses a date/time string into an Object. This convenience method simply calls parse(String, ParsePosition).
      Specified by:
      parseObject in class Format
      See Also:
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance()
      Gets the time formatter with the default formatting style for the default FORMAT locale.
      Returns:
      a time formatter.
      See Also:
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(int style)
      Returns the time formatter with the given formatting style for the default FORMAT locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "h:mm a" in the US locale. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      Returns:
      a time formatter.
      See Also:
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(int style, Locale aLocale)
      Returns the time formatter with the given formatting style for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "h:mm a" in the US locale. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      aLocale - the given locale.
      Returns:
      a time formatter.
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(int style, ULocale locale)
      Returns the time formatter with the given formatting style for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "h:mm a" in the US locale. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      locale - the given ulocale.
      Returns:
      a time formatter.
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance()
      Returns the date formatter with the default formatting style for the default FORMAT locale.
      Returns:
      a date formatter.
      See Also:
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(int style)
      Returns the date formatter with the given formatting style for the default FORMAT locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "M/d/yy" in the US locale. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      Returns:
      a date formatter.
      See Also:
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(int style, Locale aLocale)
      Returns the date formatter with the given formatting style for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "M/d/yy" in the US locale. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      aLocale - the given locale.
      Returns:
      a date formatter.
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(int style, ULocale locale)
      Returns the date formatter with the given formatting style for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      style - the given formatting style. For example, SHORT for "M/d/yy" in the US locale. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      locale - the given ulocale.
      Returns:
      a date formatter.
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance()
      Returns the date/time formatter with the default formatting style for the default FORMAT locale.
      Returns:
      a date/time formatter.
      See Also:
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(int dateStyle, int timeStyle)
      Returns the date/time formatter with the given date and time formatting styles for the default FORMAT locale.
      Parameters:
      dateStyle - the given date formatting style. For example, SHORT for "M/d/yy" in the US locale. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      timeStyle - the given time formatting style. For example, SHORT for "h:mm a" in the US locale. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      Returns:
      a date/time formatter.
      See Also:
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(int dateStyle, int timeStyle, Locale aLocale)
      Returns the date/time formatter with the given formatting styles for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      dateStyle - the given date formatting style. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      timeStyle - the given time formatting style. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      aLocale - the given locale.
      Returns:
      a date/time formatter.
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(int dateStyle, int timeStyle, ULocale locale)
      Returns the date/time formatter with the given formatting styles for the given locale.
      Parameters:
      dateStyle - the given date formatting style. As currently implemented, relative date formatting only affects a limited range of calendar days before or after the current date, based on the CLDR <field type="day">/<relative> data: For example, in English, "Yesterday", "Today", and "Tomorrow". Outside of this range, relative dates are formatted using the corresponding non-relative style.
      timeStyle - the given time formatting style. Relative time styles are not currently supported, and behave just like the corresponding non-relative style.
      locale - the given ulocale.
      Returns:
      a date/time formatter.
    • getInstance

      public static final DateFormat getInstance()
      Returns a default date/time formatter that uses the SHORT style for both the date and the time.
    • getAvailableLocales

      public static Locale[] getAvailableLocales()
      Returns the set of locales for which DateFormats are installed.
      Returns:
      the set of locales for which DateFormats are installed.
    • getAvailableULocales

      public static ULocale[] getAvailableULocales()
      Returns the set of locales for which DateFormats are installed.
      Returns:
      the set of locales for which DateFormats are installed.
    • setCalendar

      public void setCalendar(Calendar newCalendar)
      Sets the calendar to be used by this date format. Initially, the default calendar for the specified or default locale is used.
      Parameters:
      newCalendar - the new Calendar to be used by the date format
    • getCalendar

      public Calendar getCalendar()
      Returns the calendar associated with this date/time formatter.
      Returns:
      the calendar associated with this date/time formatter.
    • setNumberFormat

      public void setNumberFormat(NumberFormat newNumberFormat)
      Sets the number formatter.
      Parameters:
      newNumberFormat - the given new NumberFormat.
    • getNumberFormat

      public NumberFormat getNumberFormat()
      Returns the number formatter which this date/time formatter uses to format and parse a time.
      Returns:
      the number formatter which this date/time formatter uses.
    • setTimeZone

      public void setTimeZone(TimeZone zone)
      Sets the time zone for the calendar of this DateFormat object.
      Parameters:
      zone - the given new time zone.
    • getTimeZone

      public TimeZone getTimeZone()
      Returns the time zone.
      Returns:
      the time zone associated with the calendar of DateFormat.
    • setLenient

      public void setLenient(boolean lenient)
      Specifies whether date/time parsing is to be lenient. With lenient parsing, the parser may use heuristics to interpret inputs that do not precisely match this object's format. Without lenient parsing, inputs must match this object's format more closely.

      Note: ICU 53 introduced finer grained control of leniency (and added new control points) making the preferred method a combination of setCalendarLenient() & setBooleanAttribute() calls. This method supports prior functionality but may not support all future leniency control & behavior of DateFormat. For control of pre 53 leniency, Calendar and DateFormat whitespace & numeric tolerance, this method is safe to use. However, mixing leniency control via this method and modification of the newer attributes via setBooleanAttribute() may produce undesirable results.
      Parameters:
      lenient - True specifies date/time interpretation to be lenient.
      See Also:
    • isLenient

      public boolean isLenient()
      Returns whether both date/time parsing in the encapsulated Calendar object and DateFormat whitespace & numeric processing is lenient.
    • setCalendarLenient

      public void setCalendarLenient(boolean lenient)
      Specifies whether date/time parsing in the encapsulated Calendar object should be lenient. With lenient parsing, the parser may use heuristics to interpret inputs that do not precisely match this object's format. Without lenient parsing, inputs must match this object's format more closely.
      Parameters:
      lenient - when true, Calendar parsing is lenient
      See Also:
    • isCalendarLenient

      public boolean isCalendarLenient()
      Returns whether date/time parsing in the encapsulated Calendar object is lenient.
    • setBooleanAttribute

      public DateFormat setBooleanAttribute(DateFormat.BooleanAttribute key, boolean value)
      Sets a boolean attribute for this instance. Aspects of DateFormat leniency are controlled by boolean attributes.
      See Also:
    • getBooleanAttribute

      public boolean getBooleanAttribute(DateFormat.BooleanAttribute key)
      Returns the current value for the specified BooleanAttribute for this instance if attribute is missing false is returned.
      See Also:
    • setContext

      public void setContext(DisplayContext context)
      Set a particular DisplayContext value in the formatter, such as CAPITALIZATION_FOR_STANDALONE.
      Parameters:
      context - The DisplayContext value to set.
    • getContext

      public DisplayContext getContext(DisplayContext.Type type)
      Get the formatter's DisplayContext value for the specified DisplayContext.Type, such as CAPITALIZATION.
      Parameters:
      type - the DisplayContext.Type whose value to return
      Returns:
      the current DisplayContext setting for the specified type
    • hashCode

      public int hashCode()
      Overrides hashCode.
      Overrides:
      hashCode in class Object
    • equals

      public boolean equals(Object obj)
      Overrides equals.
      Overrides:
      equals in class Object
    • clone

      public Object clone()
      Overrides clone.
      Overrides:
      clone in class Format
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle, Locale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates in the calendar system specified by cal.

      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date format is desired.
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle, ULocale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates in the calendar system specified by cal.

      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date format is desired.
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int timeStyle, Locale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a time format is desired.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the time format is desired.
      See Also:
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int timeStyle, ULocale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a time format is desired.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the time format is desired.
      See Also:
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle, int timeStyle, Locale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
      See Also:
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle, int timeStyle, ULocale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
      See Also:
    • getInstance

      public static final DateFormat getInstance(Calendar cal, Locale locale)
      Returns a date/time formatter that uses the SHORT style for both the date and the time.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getInstance

      public static final DateFormat getInstance(Calendar cal, ULocale locale)
      Returns a date/time formatter that uses the SHORT style for both the date and the time.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getInstance

      public static final DateFormat getInstance(Calendar cal)
      Returns a default date/time formatter that uses the SHORT style for both the date and the time.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
    • getDateInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle)
      Creates a DateFormat object for the default locale that can be used to format dates in the calendar system specified by cal.

      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
    • getTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int timeStyle)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a time format is desired.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      See Also:
    • getDateTimeInstance

      public static final DateFormat getDateTimeInstance(Calendar cal, int dateStyle, int timeStyle)
      Creates a DateFormat object for the default locale that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      dateStyle - The type of date format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      timeStyle - The type of time format desired. This can be SHORT, MEDIUM, etc.
      See Also:
    • getInstanceForSkeleton

      public static final DateFormat getInstanceForSkeleton(String skeleton)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the default locale.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
    • getInstanceForSkeleton

      public static final DateFormat getInstanceForSkeleton(String skeleton, Locale locale)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the given locale.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getInstanceForSkeleton

      public static final DateFormat getInstanceForSkeleton(String skeleton, ULocale locale)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the given locale.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getInstanceForSkeleton

      public static final DateFormat getInstanceForSkeleton(Calendar cal, String skeleton, Locale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getInstanceForSkeleton

      public static final DateFormat getInstanceForSkeleton(Calendar cal, String skeleton, ULocale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getPatternInstance

      public static final DateFormat getPatternInstance(String skeleton)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the default locale. The getInstanceForSkeleton methods are preferred over the getPatternInstance methods.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
    • getPatternInstance

      public static final DateFormat getPatternInstance(String skeleton, Locale locale)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the given locale. The getInstanceForSkeleton methods are preferred over the getPatternInstance methods.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getPatternInstance

      public static final DateFormat getPatternInstance(String skeleton, ULocale locale)
      Returns a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the given locale. The getInstanceForSkeleton methods are preferred over the getPatternInstance methods.
      Parameters:
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getPatternInstance

      public static final DateFormat getPatternInstance(Calendar cal, String skeleton, Locale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal. The getInstanceForSkeleton methods are preferred over the getPatternInstance methods.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.
    • getPatternInstance

      public static final DateFormat getPatternInstance(Calendar cal, String skeleton, ULocale locale)
      Creates a DateFormat object that can be used to format dates and times in the calendar system specified by cal. The getInstanceForSkeleton methods are preferred over the getPatternInstance methods.
      Parameters:
      cal - The calendar system for which a date/time format is desired.
      skeleton - The skeleton that selects the fields to be formatted. (Uses the DateTimePatternGenerator.) This can be ABBR_MONTH, MONTH_WEEKDAY_DAY, etc.
      locale - The locale for which the date/time format is desired.