Final answer:
The correct answer is 'long text'. This data type supports the storage of alphanumeric characters and special symbols in quantities greater than 255, which is ideal for handling large amounts of text.
Step-by-step explanation:
The data type that allows alphanumeric characters and special symbols in quantities greater than 255 is long text. In database systems, such as those structured by LibreTexts™, different data types are used to store various kinds of information.
The short text data type typically limits input to 255 characters, while the long text data type allows for much larger amounts of text, which can include letters, numbers (composed of digits like 1, 2, 3, etc.), and special symbols. This data type is especially useful for storing large amounts of unstructured text data, like descriptions, comments, or articles.