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The relational model is an abstract model used to organize data within a database. In order to control access to a database, write data, run queries, or perform any other tasks related to database management, a database management system must have some kind of underlying model that defines how the data within it are organized.
Databases that implement the relational model are often referred to as *relational databases*. The relational model was for a long time the most sophisticated model for organizing data, and its widespread use has only recently been curbed by the rise of nonrelational — or, NoSQL — data models.
The most fundamental elements in the relational model are *relations*, which users and modern RDBMSs recognize as *tables*. A relation is a set of *tuples*, or rows in a table, with each tuple sharing a set of *attributes*, or columns:
A column is the smallest organizational structure of a relational database, and represents the various facets that define the records in the table. Hence their more formal name, attributes. It can be helpful to think of each tuple as a unique instance of whatever type of people, objects, events, or associations the table holds.
For more educational resources related to the relational model, please visit:
For more information on how to work with relational databases, we encourage you to check out our How To Use SQL tutorial series.
