>>>>> "Michael" == Michael Fuhr <mike@xxxxxxxx> writes: Michael> Isn't that the situation here? The PL/Perl function body is a Michael> string encoded in the database's encoding, which in this case is Michael> UTF-8. If that's always the case, then the embedded Perl interpreter should be started in that mode, perhaps by adding "-Mutf8" to the arg list of the embedded interpreter. -- Randal L. Schwartz - Stonehenge Consulting Services, Inc. - +1 503 777 0095 <merlyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> <URL:http://www.stonehenge.com/merlyn/> Perl/Unix/security consulting, Technical writing, Comedy, etc. etc. See PerlTraining.Stonehenge.com for onsite and open-enrollment Perl training!