SQL Language Guide : 2. Introducing SQL : Regular and Delimited Identifiers
 
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Regular and Delimited Identifiers
Identifiers in SQL statements specify names for the following objects:
Authorization identifier (user, group, or role)
Column
Constraint
Correlation name
Index
Location
Schema
Synonym
Table
View
The name for any of these objects can be specified using regular (unquoted) identifiers or delimited (double-quoted) identifiers. For example:
Table name specified using a regular identifier in a SELECT SQL statement:
SELECT * FROM employees
Table name specified using a delimited identifier in a SELECT SQL statement:
SELECT * FROM "my table"
Delimited identifiers let you use special characters in object names. The use of special characters in regular identifiers is restricted. For example, a view name that begins with or consists only of numeric characters must be delimited because a regular identifier cannot begin with the characters 0 through 9, #, @, and $.