Identifiers

In Materialize, identifiers are used to refer to columns and database objects like sources, views, and indexes.

Naming restrictions

Materialize has the following naming restrictions for identifiers:

Position	Allowed Characters
First character	ASCII letters (a-z, A-Z), underscore (_), or any non-ASCII character
Remaining	ASCII letters (a-z, A-Z), digits (0-9), underscores (_), dollar sign ($), or any non-ASCII character

To override these restrictions, you can enclose the identifier in double quotes; e.g., "123_source" or "fun_source_@". Inside double quotes, characters are interpreted literally, except for the double-quote character itself. To include a double quote within a double-quoted identifier, escape it by writing two adjacent double quotes, as in “includes"“quote”.

Case sensitivity

Materialize performs case folding (the caseless comparison of text) for identifiers, which means that identifiers are effectively case-insensitive (foo is the same as FOO is the same as fOo). This can cause issues when column names come from data sources which do support case-sensitive names, such as Avro-formatted sources.

To avoid conflicts, double-quote all field names ("field_name") when working with case-sensitive sources.

Renaming restrictions

You cannot rename an item if any of the following are true:

• It is not uniquely qualified across all dependent references.

  For example, suppose you have:

  • Two views named v1 in different databases (d1 and d2) under the same schema name (s1), and
  • Both v1 views are referenced by another view.

  You may rename either v1 only if every dependent query that mentions both views fully qualifies all such references, e.g.:

  CREATE VIEW v2 AS
  SELECT *
  FROM d1.s1.v1
  JOIN d2.s1.v1
  ON d1.s1.v1.a = d2.s1.v1.a;
  

  If the two views were instead in schemas with distinct names, qualifying by schema alone would be sufficient (you would not need to include the database name).

• Renaming would cause any identifier collision with a dependent query.

  • An existing collision: a dependent query already uses the item’s current identifier for some database, schema, object, or column, so changing the item’s name would change how that identifier resolves.

    In the examples below, v1 cannot be renamed because dependent queries already use the identifier v1:

    • Any dependent query references a database, schema, or column that uses the same identifier.

      In the following examples, v1 could not be renamed:

      CREATE VIEW v3 AS
      SELECT *
      FROM v1
      JOIN v2
      ON v1.a = v2.v1
      

      CREATE VIEW v4 AS
      SELECT *
      FROM v1
      JOIN v1.v2
      ON v1.a = v2.a
      

  • A proposed-name collision: the new name matches any identifier referenced in a dependent query, whether that identifier is referenced explicitly or implicitly.

    Consider this example:

    CREATE VIEW v5 AS
    SELECT *
    FROM d1.s1.v2
    JOIN v1
    ON v1.a = v2.b
    

    You could not rename v1 to:

    • a
    • b
    • v2
    • s1
    • d1
    • materialize or public (implicitly referenced by materialize.public.v1 using the default database and schema)

Keyword collision

Materialize is very permissive with accepting SQL keywords as identifiers (e.g. offset, user). If Materialize cannot use a keyword as an identifier in a particular location, it throws a syntax error. You can wrap the identifier in double quotes to force Materialize to interpret the word as an identifier instead of a keyword.

For example, SELECT offset is invalid, because it looks like a mistyping of SELECT OFFSET <n>. You can wrap the identifier in double quotes, as in SELECT "offset", to resolve the error.

We recommend that you avoid using keywords as identifiers whenever possible, as the syntax errors that result are not always obvious.

The current keywords are listed below.

ABORT	ACCESS	ACTION
ADD	ADDED	ADDRESS	ADDRESSES
AFTER	AGGREGATE	AGGREGATION	ALIGNED
ALL	ALTER	ANALYSE	ANALYSIS
ANALYZE	AND	ANY	APPLY
ARITY	ARN	ARRANGED	ARRANGEMENT
ARRAY	AS	ASC	ASSERT
ASSUME	AT	AUCTION	AUTHORITY
AVAILABILITY	AVRO	AWS	BATCH
BEGIN	BETWEEN	BIGINT	BILLED
BODY	BOOLEAN	BOTH	BPCHAR
BROKEN	BROKER	BROKERS	BY
BYTES	CAPTURE	CARDINALITY	CASCADE
CASE	CAST	CATALOG	CERTIFICATE
CHAIN	CHAINS	CHAR	CHARACTER
CHARACTERISTICS	CHECK	CLASS	CLIENT
CLOCK	CLOSE	CLUSTER	CLUSTERS
COALESCE	COLLATE	COLUMN	COLUMNS
COMMENT	COMMIT	COMMITTED	COMPACTION
COMPATIBILITY	COMPRESSION	COMPUTE	COMPUTECTL
CONFIG	CONFLUENT	CONNECTION	CONNECTIONS
CONSTRAINT	CONTINUAL	COPY	COUNT
COUNTER	CPU	CREATE	CREATECLUSTER
CREATEDB	CREATENETWORKPOLICY	CREATEROLE	CREATION
CREDENTIAL	CROSS	CSE	CSV
CURRENT	CURSOR	DATABASE	DATABASES
DATUMS	DAY	DAYS	DEALLOCATE
DEBEZIUM	DEBUG	DEBUGGING	DEC
DECIMAL	DECLARE	DECODING	DECORRELATED
DEFAULT	DEFAULTS	DELETE	DELIMITED
DELIMITER	DELTA	DESC	DETAILS
DIRECTION	DISCARD	DISK	DISTINCT
DOC	DOT	DOUBLE	DROP
EAGER	ELEMENT	ELSE	ENABLE
END	ENDPOINT	ENFORCED	ENVELOPE
EQUIVALENCES	ERROR	ERRORS	ESCAPE
ESTIMATE	EVERY	EXCEPT	EXCLUDE
EXECUTE	EXISTS	EXPECTED	EXPLAIN
EXPOSE	EXPRESSIONS	EXTERNAL	EXTRACT
FACTOR	FALSE	FAST	FEATURES
FETCH	FIELDS	FILE	FILES
FILTER	FIRST	FIXPOINT	FLOAT
FOLLOWING	FOR	FOREIGN	FORMAT
FORWARD	FROM	FULL	FULLNAME
FUNCTION	FUSION	GENERATOR	GRANT
GREATEST	GROUP	GROUPS	HAVING
HEADER	HEADERS	HINTS	HISTORY
HOLD	HOST	HOUR	HOURS
HUMANIZED	HYDRATION	ICEBERG	ID
IDENTIFIERS	IDS	IF	IGNORE
ILIKE	IMPLEMENTATIONS	IMPORTED	IN
INCLUDE	INDEX	INDEXES	INFO
INHERIT	INLINE	INNER	INPUT
INSERT	INSIGHTS	INSPECT	INSTANCE
INT	INTEGER	INTERNAL	INTERSECT
INTERVAL	INTO	INTROSPECTION	IS
ISNULL	ISOLATION	JOIN	JOINS
JSON	KAFKA	KEY	KEYS
LAST	LATERAL	LATEST	LEADING
LEAST	LEFT	LEGACY	LETREC
LEVEL	LIKE	LIMIT	LINEAR
LIST	LOAD	LOCAL	LOCALLY
LOG	LOGICAL	LOGIN	LOWERING
MANAGED	MANUAL	MAP	MARKETING
MATERIALIZE	MATERIALIZED	MAX	MECHANISMS
MEMBERSHIP	MEMORY	MESSAGE	METADATA
MINUTE	MINUTES	MODE	MONTH
MONTHS	MUTUALLY	MYSQL	NAME
NAMES	NAMESPACE	NATURAL	NEGATIVE
NETWORK	NEW	NEXT	NFC
NFD	NFKC	NFKD	NO
NOCREATECLUSTER	NOCREATEDB	NOCREATEROLE	NODE
NOINHERIT	NOLOGIN	NON	NONE
NORMALIZE	NOSUPERUSER	NOT	NOTICE
NOTICES	NULL	NULLIF	NULLS
OBJECTS	OF	OFFSET	ON
ONLY	OPERATOR	OPTIMIZED	OPTIMIZER
OPTIONS	OR	ORDER	ORDINALITY
OUTER	OVER	OWNED	OWNER
PARTITION	PARTITIONS	PASSWORD	PATH
PATTERN	PHYSICAL	PLAN	PLANS
POLICIES	POLICY	PORT	POSITION
POSTGRES	PRECEDING	PRECISION	PREFIX
PREPARE	PRIMARY	PRIORITIZE	PRIVATELINK
PRIVILEGES	PROGRESS	PROJECTION	PROTOBUF
PROTOCOL	PUBLIC	PUBLICATION	PUSHDOWN
QUALIFY	QUERY	QUOTE	RAISE
RANGE	RATE	RAW	READ
READY	REAL	REASSIGN	RECURSION
RECURSIVE	REDACTED	REDUCE	REFERENCE
REFERENCES	REFRESH	REGEX	REGION
REGISTRY	RELATION	RENAME	REOPTIMIZE
REPEATABLE	REPLACE	REPLACEMENT	REPLAN
REPLICA	REPLICAS	REPLICATION	RESET
RESPECT	RESTRICT	RETAIN	RETURN
RETURNING	REVOKE	RIGHT	ROLE
ROLES	ROLLBACK	ROTATE	ROUNDS
ROW	ROWS	RULES	SASL
SCALE	SCHEDULE	SCHEMA	SCHEMAS
SCOPE	SECOND	SECONDS	SECRET
SECRETS	SECURITY	SEED	SELECT
SEQUENCES	SERIALIZABLE	SERVER	SERVICE
SESSION	SET	SHARD	SHOW
SINK	SINKS	SIZE	SKEW
SMALLINT	SNAPSHOT	SOME	SOURCE
SOURCES	SQL	SSH	SSL
START	STDIN	STDOUT	STORAGE
STORAGECTL	STRATEGY	STRICT	STRING
STRONG	SUBSCRIBE	SUBSOURCE	SUBSOURCES
SUBSTRING	SUBTREE	SUPERUSER	SWAP
SYNTAX	SYSTEM	TABLE	TABLES
TAIL	TASK	TASKS	TEMP
TEMPORARY	TEXT	THEN	TICK
TIES	TIME	TIMEOUT	TIMESTAMP
TIMESTAMPTZ	TIMING	TO	TOKEN
TOPIC	TPCH	TRACE	TRAILING
TRANSACTION	TRANSACTIONAL	TRANSFORM	TRIM
TRUE	TUNNEL	TYPE	TYPES
UNBOUNDED	UNCOMMITTED	UNION	UNIQUE
UNKNOWN	UNNEST	UNTIL	UP
UPDATE	UPSERT	URL	USAGE
USER	USERNAME	USERS	USING
VALIDATE	VALUE	VALUES	VARCHAR
VARIADIC	VARYING	VERBOSE	VERSION
VIEW	VIEWS	WAIT	WAREHOUSE
WARNING	WEBHOOK	WHEN	WHERE
WHILE	WINDOW	WIRE	WITH
WITHIN	WITHOUT	WORK	WORKERS
WORKLOAD	WRITE	YEAR	YEARS
ZONE	ZONES