iconv

Convert encoding of a file from one character set encoding to another.

Syntax
 iconv [Option...] -f encoding -t encoding inputfile 
 iconv -l
Options
 -f encoding
 --from-code encoding
 Convert characters From encoding.
 -t encoding
 --to-code encoding
 Convert characters To encoding.
 --list
 List known coded character sets
 The encodings available are system dependent.
 -o file
 --output file
 Specify an output file (instead of stdout.)
Options controlling conversion problems:
 -c When this option is given, characters that cannot be converted are silently
 discarded, instead of leading to a conversion error.
 --unicode-subst=formatstring
 Replace Unicode characters that cannot be represented in the target
 encoding with a placeholder string that is constructed from formatstring,
 applied to the Unicode code point. The formatstring must be in the same
 format as for the printf command or the printf() function, taking either
 no argument or exactly one unsigned integer argument.
 --byte-subst=formatstring
 Replace bytes in the input that are not valid in the source encoding 
 with a placeholder string constructed from the given formatstring,
 applied to the byte’s value. The formatstring must be in the same
 format as for the printf command or the printf() function, taking either
 no argument or exactly one unsigned integer argument.
 --widechar-subst=formatstring
 Replace wide characters in the input that are not valid in the source
 encoding with a placeholder string that is constructed from the given
 formatstring, applied to the byte’s value. The formatstring must
 be in the same format as for the printf command or the printf() function,
 taking either no argument or exactly one unsigned integer argument.
Options controlling error output:
 −s
 −−silent
 Suppress error messages about invalid or unconvertible characters are omitted
 --verbose
 Print progress information. 

The iconv program converts the encoding of characters in inputfile from one coded character set to another. The result is written to standard output unless otherwise specified by the --output option.

Examples

Convert input.txt from ISO-8859-1 to UTF-8 and save as output.txt

$ iconv -f ISO-8859-1 -t UTF-8 < input.txt > output.txt

Script to convert all .HTML files in a directory from Windows 1242 to UTF8 (from brianwc/ShareAlike.org)

#/bin/bash
LIST='ls *.html'
for i in $LIST;
do iconv -f WINDOWS-1252 -t UTF8 $i -o $i."utf8";
mv $i."utf8" $i;
done

“Acceptance of a double standard has always been a sign of inferiority. To let someone behave according to one set of principles or values while demanding that you be subjected to others is to validate a claim of superiority that justifies the inconsistent and unfair behavior" ~ Bruce Thornton (The Truth about Tolerance)

Related Linux commands

uuencode - Encode a binary file.
Equivalent Windows command: TYPE - Convert to Windows 1252.