CREATE DATABASE [IF NOT EXISTS] db_name
[create_specification [, create_specification] ...]

create_specification:
[DEFAULT] CHARACTER SET charset_name
| [DEFAULT] COLLATE collation_name

CREATE DATABASE creates a database with the given name.

Rules for allowable database names are given in section 10.2 Database, Table, Index, Column, and Alias Names. An error occurs if the database already exists and you didn't specify IF NOT EXISTS.

As of MySQL 4.1.1, create_specification options may be given. The CHARACTER SET clause specifies the database character set. The COLLATE clause specifies the database collation.

Database characteristics are stored in the `db.opt' file in the database directory.

Databases in MySQL are implemented as directories containing files that correspond to tables in the database. Because there are no tables in a database when it is initially created, the CREATE DATABASE statement only creates a directory under the MySQL data directory.

You can also create databases with mysqladmin.

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