# open mysql command line
mysql --default-character-set=utf8 -u root -p

# set character-set to utf8
SET NAMES 'utf8';

# create the database
CREATE DATABASE `geonames`;

# use the database
USE `geonames`;

# create the allCountries table for example
CREATE TABLE `geonames`.`allCountries` (
`geonameId` int(10) unsigned NOT NULL default '0',
`name` varchar(200) NOT NULL default '',
`ansiName` varchar(200) NOT NULL default '',
`alternateNames` varchar(2000) NOT NULL default '',
`latitude` double NOT NULL default '0',
`longitude` double NOT NULL default '0',
`featureClass` char(1) ,
`featureCode` varchar(10) ,
`countryCode` char(2),
`cc2` varchar(60),
`admin1Code` varchar(20) default '',
`admin2Code` varchar(80) default '',
`admin3Code` varchar(20) default '',
`admin4Code` varchar(20) default '',
`population` bigint(11) default '0',
`elevation` int(11) default '0',
`gtopo30` int(11) default '0',
`timezone` varchar(40),
`modificationDate` date default '0000-00-00',
PRIMARY KEY (`geonameid`)
) CHARACTER SET utf8 ;

# here I inserted the character-set property that works for me
LOAD DATA INFILE '/tmp/geonames/allCountries.txt' INTO TABLE `geonames`.`allCountries` CHARACTER SET utf8 (geonameId,name,ansiName,alternateNames,latitude,longitude,featureClass,featureCode,countryCode,cc2,admin1Code,admin2Code,admin3Code,admin4Code,population,elevation,gtopo30,timezone,modificationDate);

# shoud be over 7 million entries (2010, January)
SELECT count(*) FROM `geonames`.`allCountries`;

# now you could use the MySQL geo spatial extensions and add the new (geo) column "coordinate"
ALTER TABLE `geonames`.`allCountries` ADD COLUMN `coordinate` POINT NOT NULL AFTER `longitude`;

# fill the new column "coordinate" with data (lat, lon) from the allCountries table
UPDATE `geonames`.`allCountries` SET coordinate = PointFromText(CONCAT('POINT(',latitude,' ',longitude,')'));

# set an index to the new geo point "coordinate". It MUST be MyISAM, see MySQL documentation
ALTER TABLE `geonames`.`allCountries` ADD SPATIAL INDEX `coordinate`(`coordinate`), ENGINE = MyISAM;

# set some MySQL statement variables, e.g. a small bounding box of part of Berlin, Germany
SET @NE_Latitude=52.45904246505317, @NE_Longitude=13.354050815105438; # northEast coords Berlin-Stegitz, Germany
SET @SW_Latitude=52.44811060147279, @SW_Longitude=13.321183025836945; # southWest coords Berlin-Stegitz, Germany

select * from `geonames`.`allCountries` where
MBRContains(
GeomFromText(CONCAT('Polygon((',@SW_Latitude,' ',@SW_Longitude,', ',@NE_Latitude,' ',@SW_Longitude,', ',@NE_Latitude,' ',@NE_Longitude,', ',@SW_Latitude,' ',@NE_Longitude,', ',@SW_Latitude,' ',@SW_Longitude,'))')),
coordinate
);

# here is same example, if you're using it in your code
select * from `geonames`.`allCountries` where
MBRContains(
GeomFromText('Polygon((52.44811060147279 13.321183025836945, 52.45904246505317 13.321183025836945, 52.45904246505317 13.354050815105438, 52.44811060147279 13.354050815105438, 52.44811060147279 13.321183025836945))'),
coordinate
);