The Relational Model

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Relational Model Terminology
• A relation is a table with columns and rows.
• Only applies to logical structure of the database, not
the physical structure.

• Attribute is a named column of a relation.

• Domain is the set of allowable values for one or

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Relational Model Terminology
• Tuple is a row of a relation.

• Degree is the number of attributes in a relation.

• Cardinality is the number of tuples in a relation.

• Relational Database is a collection of normalized

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Instances of Branch and Staff (part)
Relations

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Examples of Attribute Domains

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Alternative Terminology for Relational
Model

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Database Relations
• Relation schema
• Named relation defined by a set of attribute and
domain name pairs.

• Relational database schema

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Properties of Relations
• Relation name is distinct from all other relation
names in relational schema.

• Each cell of relation contains exactly one atomic

• Each attribute has a distinct name.

• Values of an attribute are all from the same domain.

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Properties of Relations
• Each tuple is distinct; there are no duplicate tuples.

• Order of attributes has no significance.

• Order of tuples has no significance, theoretically.

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Relational Keys
• Superkey
• An attribute, or a set of attributes, that uniquely
identifies a tuple within a relation.

• Candidate Key
• Superkey (K) such that no proper subset is a superkey
within the relation.
• In each tuple of R, values of K uniquely identify that tuple
(uniqueness).
• No proper subset of K has the uniqueness property
(irreducibility).

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Relational Keys
• Primary Key
• Candidate key selected to identify tuples uniquely
within relation.

• Alternate Keys
• Candidate keys that are not selected to be primary
key.

• Foreign Key
• Attribute, or set of attributes, within one relation that
matches candidate key of some (possibly same)
relation.

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Relational Integrity
• Null
• Represents value for an attribute that is currently
unknown or not applicable for tuple
• Deals with incomplete or exceptional data.
• Represents the absence of a value and is not the
same as zero or spaces, which are values.

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Relational Integrity
• Entity Integrity
• In a base relation, no attribute of a primary key can be
null.

• Referential Integrity
• If foreign key exists in a relation, either foreign key
value must match a candidate key value of some tuple
in its home relation or foreign key value must be
wholly null.

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Relational Integrity
• Enterprise Constraints
• Additional rules specified by users or database
administrators.

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Views
• Base Relation
• Named relation corresponding to an entity in
conceptual schema, whose tuples are physically
stored in database.

• View
• Dynamic result of one or more relational operations
operating on base relations to produce another
relation.

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 Views
• A virtual relation that does not necessarily actually
exist in the database but is produced upon request,
at time of request.

• Contents of a view are defined as a query on one

• Views are dynamic, meaning that changes made to

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Purpose of Views
• Provides powerful and flexible security
mechanism by hiding parts of database from
certain users.

• Permits users to access data in a customized way,

• Can simplify complex operations on base

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 Updating Views
• All updates to a base relation should be
immediately reflected in all views that reference
that base relation.

• If view is updated, underlying base relation

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Updating Views
• There are restrictions on types of modifications
that can be made through views:
- Updates are allowed if query involves a single base
relation and contains a candidate key of base
relation.
- Updates are not allowed involving multiple base
relations.
- Updates are not allowed involving aggregation or
grouping operations.

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Updating Views
• Classes of views are defined as:
• theoretically not updateable
• theoretically updateable
• partially updateable.

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Relational Database Schema of
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