Incidentally, shibha, I was using CHAR(2)s because that's the datatype of the fields "language_code" and "country_code".

marist89, I appreciate the resource file, but I certainly wouldn't be posting the problem here if I hadn't done my research before-hand. The fact that you have no positive feedback to offer regarding my problem only shows me that it stumps you, too, and negates the desired effect of your post.