11.1.2.3 The KEYWORD Package

The KEYWORD package contains symbols, called keywords[1], that are typically used as special markers in programs and their associated data expressions[1].

Symbol tokens that start with a package marker are parsed by the Lisp reader as symbols in the KEYWORD package; see Section 2.3.4 (Symbols as Tokens). This makes it notationally convenient to use keywords when communicating between programs in different packages. For example, the mechanism for passing keyword parameters in a call uses keywords[1] to name the corresponding arguments; see Section 3.4.1 (Ordinary Lambda Lists).

Symbols in the KEYWORD package are, by definition, of type keyword.

11.1.2.3.1 Interning a Symbol in the KEYWORD Package

11.1.2.3.2 Notes about The KEYWORD Package