Most Basic SQL Doubt - Why is it called a Table in the first place?

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Most Basic SQL Doubt - Why is it called a Table in the first place?

arun11.prasanth

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Points: 27
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March 2, 2014 at 11:06 pm

#396355

Hi
I have been pondering this for a while now. All the rest of SQL objects (Views, Procs, Triggers, Indexes) have suitable names that pertain to the meaning of the same. But why is a database Table called a 'Table' in the first place?
Does a real-world table contain rows and columns? Why did they name it thus?
I'm sure this question might seem silly for many. But I had this doubt ever since I heard of SQL tables and would like to know the reason why they're named that way.

Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)

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MyDoggieJessie SSC-Forever Points: 44484 More actions · Answer 1

The best answer I can give you is, Latin - "Table" is derived from the classical Latin word "tabula."

Maybe it got its name because it's a structure that you can place things on, stack neatly, easily organize...and all the other good words in the language were taken already!

That's like questioning why the letters of the alphabet start with "A-B-C" and not Q-W-E" 😀

(Snort, snort, snort)

______________________________________________________________________________Never argue with an idiot; Theyll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1003857 More actions · Answer 2

It comes from the second definition for "Table" in the dictionary...

a set of facts or figures systematically displayed, esp. in columns.

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

webrunner SSC-Dedicated Points: 31715 More actions · Answer 3

I think this is the most complete etymological explanation:

http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/10976/does-the-word-table-have-anything-to-do-with-a-table

That kind of table comes from the Latin tabula meaning "a board or plank" which was used for writing down columns of numbers

That page has a link to this page, which has further detail:

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=table&searchmode=none

Both the French and Germanic words are from Latin tabula "a board, plank; writing table; list, schedule; picture, painted panel," originally "small flat slab or piece" usually for inscriptions or for games (source also of Spanish tabla, Italian tavola), of uncertain origin, related to Umbrian tafle "on the board."

Basically, it seems like boards and planks were sometimes used to record lists or other data, and eventually that idea stuck in the derived name.

I hope this helps.

Great question, by the way!

- webrunner

-------------------
A SQL query walks into a bar and sees two tables. He walks up to them and asks, "Can I join you?"
Ref.: http://tkyte.blogspot.com/2009/02/sql-joke.html

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1003857 More actions · Answer 4

webrunner (5/24/2014)
I think this is the most complete etymological explanation:
http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/10976/does-the-word-table-have-anything-to-do-with-a-table
That kind of table comes from the Latin tabula meaning "a board or plank" which was used for writing down columns of numbers
That page has a link to this page, which has further detail:
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=table&searchmode=none
BWAA-HAAAA!!! I was just thinking that I should change the article called "Crosstabs and Pivots" to "Crossed Planks and Hinges". 😛
Both the French and Germanic words are from Latin tabula "a board, plank; writing table; list, schedule; picture, painted panel," originally "small flat slab or piece" usually for inscriptions or for games (source also of Spanish tabla, Italian tavola), of uncertain origin, related to Umbrian tafle "on the board."
Basically, it seems like boards and planks were sometimes used to record lists or other data, and eventually that idea stuck in the derived name.
I hope this helps.
Great question, by the way!
- webrunner

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

TomThomson SSC Guru Points: 104773 More actions · Answer 5

Even today the Latin word tabula is sometimes used in English, for example in the phrase "tabula rasa" (an erased slate - or an empty table :-D); in Latin, it meant a slate or a wax tablet, the two common things on which one could write or draw and also erase or alter what was already there. And that's where English got the word table from.

So one meaning of "table" is something that can record information and whose contents can be deleted or altered. One special meaning was for such a thing where the information was organised into rows and columns. This special meaning antedated relational databases by a very long time, and given what the storage structure in relational databases is it's not surprising that people noticed that the storage structure consisted of something for which we already had the name "table" and didn't bother to invent a new name.

Tom