ANSI Common Lisp   11 Packages   11.1 Package Concepts   11.1.2 Standardized Packages

11.1.2.3 The KEYWORD Package

The keyword package contains symbols, called keywords₁, that are typically used as special markers in programs and their associated data expressions₁.

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 keywords₁ 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