002 SQL Syntax

Here’s a summary of the current W3Schools SQL Syntax page:

SQL statements are used to perform actions on databases. They are made up of easy-to-understand keywords.
Keywords are case-insensitive (e.g., select = SELECT), but this tutorial uses all keywords in uppercase for clarity.
Semicolons: While some database systems require a semicolon at the end of each SQL statement, it is generally used to separate statements, especially when you execute more than one statement in a single server call. This tutorial regularly appends semicolons to statements.
Tables: Databases contain tables identified by names, holding records (rows) with data. Examples are based on the Northwind sample database (“Customers” table).
Core SQL commands:
- SELECT – Extracts data from a database
- UPDATE – Updates existing data
- DELETE – Deletes data
- INSERT INTO – Adds new data
- CREATE DATABASE – Creates a database
- ALTER DATABASE – Modifies a database
- CREATE TABLE – Creates a table
- ALTER TABLE – Modifies a table
- DROP TABLE – Deletes a table
- CREATE INDEX – Creates an index
- DROP INDEX – Deletes an index

The page introduces these basics as a foundation for the full SQL tutorial and references example tables for learning.[1]

SQL Syntax

SQL Statements

Most of the actions you need to perform on a database are done with SQL statements.

SQL statements consist of keywords that are easy to understand.

The following SQL statement returns all records from a table named "Customers":

Select all records from the Customers table:

SELECT * FROM Customers;

In this tutorial we will teach you all about the different SQL statements.

Database Tables

A database most often contains one or more tables. Each table is identified by a name (e.g. "Customers" or "Orders"), and contain records (rows) with data.

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database (included in MS Access and MS SQL Server).

Below is a selection from the Customers table used in the examples:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
1	Alfreds Futterkiste	Maria Anders	Obere Str. 57	Berlin	12209	Germany
2	Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados	Ana Trujillo	Avda. de la Constitución 2222	México D.F.	05021	Mexico
3	Antonio Moreno Taquería	Antonio Moreno	Mataderos 2312	México D.F.	05023	Mexico
4	Around the Horn	Thomas Hardy	120 Hanover Sq.	London	WA1 1DP	UK
5	Berglunds snabbköp	Christina Berglund	Berguvsvägen 8	Luleå	S-958 22	Sweden

The table above contains five records (one for each customer) and seven columns (CustomerID, CustomerName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode, and Country).

Keep in Mind That...

SQL keywords are NOT case sensitive: select is the same as SELECT

In this tutorial we will write all SQL keywords in upper-case.

Semicolon after SQL Statements?

Some database systems require a semicolon at the end of each SQL statement.

Semicolon is the standard way to separate each SQL statement in database systems that allow more than one SQL statement to be executed in the same call to the server.

In this tutorial, we will use semicolon at the end of each SQL statement.

Some of The Most Important SQL Commands

SELECT - extracts data from a database
UPDATE - updates data in a database
DELETE - deletes data from a database
INSERT INTO - inserts new data into a database
CREATE DATABASE - creates a new database
ALTER DATABASE - modifies a database
CREATE TABLE - creates a new table
ALTER TABLE - modifies a table
DROP TABLE - deletes a table
CREATE INDEX - creates an index (search key)
DROP INDEX - deletes an index