---
title: "relational object"
description: "A relational object is a fundamental concept in relational databases, representing a structured collection of data organized into rows and columns."
canonical: "https://motherduck.com/glossary/relational-object/"
related:
  - title: "Object name resolution | MotherDuck Docs"
    url: "https://motherduck.com/docs/concepts/object-name-resolution/"
  - title: "Analyze JSON Data Using SQL and DuckDB"
    url: "https://motherduck.com/blog/analyze-json-data-using-sql/"
  - title: "Database Concepts | MotherDuck Docs"
    url: "https://motherduck.com/docs/concepts/database-concepts/"
gated_asset:
  title: "DuckLake: The Lakehouse Table Format"
  url: "https://motherduck.com/lp/ducklake-lakehouse-table-format-book-full/"
---

# relational object

> A relational object is a fundamental concept in relational databases, representing a structured collection of data organized into rows and columns.

A relational object is a fundamental concept in relational databases, representing a structured collection of data organized into rows and columns. In the context of SQL and database management systems like [DuckDB](https://duckdb.org/), relational objects typically refer to tables, views, or query results. These objects adhere to the relational model, allowing for efficient data manipulation and retrieval through SQL operations. For example, in DuckDB, you can create a relational object as a table:

```sql
CREATE TABLE employees (
    id INTEGER,
    name VARCHAR,
    department VARCHAR
);
```

You can then query this relational object:

```sql
SELECT * FROM employees WHERE department = 'Sales';
```

Relational objects enable data analysts and engineers to work with structured data in a consistent and standardized manner, facilitating complex queries, joins, and aggregations across multiple datasets.