Oracle / PLSQL: TO_YMINTERVAL Function

This Oracle tutorial explains how to use the Oracle/PLSQL TO_YMINTERVAL function with syntax and examples.

Description

The Oracle/PLSQL TO_YMINTERVAL function converts a string to an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH type.

Syntax

The syntax for the TO_YMINTERVAL function in Oracle/PLSQL is:

TO_YMINTERVAL( character )

Parameters or Arguments

character

The value to convert to an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH type. It can be a char, varchar2, nchar, or nvarchar2 value.

Returns

The TO_YMINTERVAL function returns an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH value.

Applies To

The TO_YMINTERVAL function can be used in the following versions of Oracle/PLSQL:

• Oracle 12c, Oracle 11g, Oracle 10g, Oracle 9i

Example

Let's look at some Oracle TO_YMINTERVAL function examples and explore how to use the TO_YMINTERVAL function in Oracle/PLSQL.

For example:

TO_YMINTERVAL('03-11')
Output: 3 years 11 months   (as an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH type)

TO_YMINTERVAL('01-05')
Output: 1 year 5 months     (as an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH type)

TO_YMINTERVAL('00-01')
Output: 0 years 1 month     (as an INTERVAL YEAR TO MONTH type)

The TO_YMINTERVAL function is most commonly used to add an interval to a date field. For example, you may wish to add 1 year and 5 months to an order date.

select order_date, order_date + to_yminterval('01-05')
from orders;

This SQL statement would return the order date, as well as the order date plus 1 year and 5 months.