SQL Reserved Words
Reserved words are SQL keywords and other symbols that have special meanings when they are processed by the Relational Engine. Reserved words are not recommended for use as database, table, column, variable or other object names. If a reserved word is used as an object name, it must be enclosed in double-quotes to notify the Relational Engine that the word is not being used as a keyword in the given context.
You can avoid having to worry about reserved words by always enclosing user-defined object names in double-quotes.
This appendix contains the following topic:
Reserved Words
Each of the symbols or words listed below has a special meaning when processed by the Relational Engine unless it is delimited by double quotation marks. Using one of these words as a table or object name without the quotation marks will cause an error.
See also the next topic, Words to Avoid.
Symbols
# | ; | : | @ |
A
ABORT | ACCELERATED | ADD |
AFTER | ALL | ALTER |
AND | ANSI_PADDING | ANY |
AS | ASC | ATOMIC |
AVG |
B
BEFORE | BEGIN | BETWEEN |
BORDER | BY |
C
CALL | CACHED_PROCEDURES | CASCADE |
CASE | CAST | CHECK |
CLOSE | COALESCE | COLLATE |
COLUMN | COMMIT | COMMITTED |
CONSTRAINT | CONVERT | COUNT |
CREATE | CREATESP | CREATETAB |
CREATEVIEW | CROSS | CS |
CURDATE | CURRENT | CURSOR |
CURTIME |
D
DATA_PATH | DATABASE | DATETIMEMILLISECONDS |
DBO | DBSEC_AUTHENTICATION | DBSEC_AUTHORIZATION |
DCOMPRESS | DDF | DECIMALSEPARATORCOMMA |
DECLARE | DEFAULT | DEFAULTCOLLATE |
DELETE | DENY | DESC |
DIAGNOSTICS | DICTIONARY | DICTIONARY_PATH |
DISTINCT | DO | DROP |
DSN |
E
EACH | ELSE | ENCODING |
END | ENFORCED | EX |
EXCLUSIVE | EXEC | EXECUTE |
EXISTING | EXISTS | EXPR |
F
FETCH | FILES | FN |
FOR | FOREIGN | FROM |
FULL | FUNCTION |
G
GLOBAL_QRYPLAN | GRANT | GROUP |
H
HANDLER | HAVING |
I
IF | IN | INDEX |
INNER | INOUT | INSERT |
INTEGRITY | INTERNAL | INTO |
IS | ISOLATION |
J
JOIN
K
KEY
L
LEAVE | LEFT | LEGACYOWNERNAME |
LEVEL | LIKE | LIMIT |
LINKDUP | LOGIN | LOOP |
M
MAX | MIN | MODE |
MODIFIABLE | MODIFY |
N
NEW | NEXT | NO |
NO_REFERENTIAL_INTEGRITY | NORMAL | NOT |
NOW | NULL |
O
OF | OFF | OFFSET |
OLD | ON | ONLY |
OPEN | OPTINNERJOIN | OR |
ORDER | OUT | OUTER |
OVER | OWNER |
P
PAGESIZE | PARTIAL | PARTITION |
PASSWORD | PCOMPRESS | PRECEDING |
PRED | PRIMARY | PRINT |
PROCEDURE | PROCEDURES_CACHE | PSQL_MOVE |
PSQL_PHYSICAL | PSQL_POSITION | PUBLIC |
Q
QRYPLAN | QRYPLANOUTPUT |
R
READ | REFERENCES | REFERENCING |
RELATIONAL | RELEASE | RENAME |
REPEAT | REPEATABLE | REPLACE |
RESTRICT | RETURN | RETURNS |
REUSE_DDF | REVERSE | REVOKE |
RIGHT | ROLLBACK | ROW |
ROWS | ROWCOUNT | ROWCOUNT2 |
S
SAVEPOINT | SECURITY | SELECT |
SERIALIZABLE | SESSIONID | SET |
SIGNAL | SIZE | SPID |
SQLSTATE | SSP_EXPR | SSP_PRED |
START | STDEV | SUM |
SVBEGIN | SVEND |
T
T | TABLE | THEN |
TO | TOP | TRANSACTION |
TRIGGER | TRIGGERSTAMPMISC | TRUEBITCREATE |
TRUENULLCREATE | TRY_CAST | TS |
U
UNBOUNDED | UNCOMMITTED | UNION |
UNIQUE | UNIQUEIDENTIFIER | UNMASK |
UNTIL | UPDATE | USER |
USING |
V
V1_METADATA | V2_METADATA | VALUES |
VIEW |
W
WHEN | WHERE | WHILE |
WITH | WORK | WRITE |
Words to Avoid
The following table lists keywords from the SQL-92 and SQL-99 ANSI standards, as well as additional keywords recognized by Zen. We recommend you avoid using these words as names for tables, columns, or other objects unless you enclose them in double quotation marks. Actian Corporation reserves the right to add support for any of these keywords as well as any future ANSI SQL keywords in future releases, which would then cause them to be included in this list.
If you use double quotation marks to delimit all table, column, and user-defined object names, then you do not need to worry about possible future conflicts with reserved words.
See also the topic Reserved Words.
ABSOLUTE | ACTION | ADD |
ALL | ALLOCATE | ALTER |
AND | ANY | ARE |
AS | ASC | ASSERTION |
AT | AUTHORIZATION | AVG |
BEGIN | BETWEEN | BIGIDENTITY |
BIT | BIT_LENGTH | BOTH |
BY | CASCADE | CASCADED |
CASE | CAST | CATALOG |
CHAR | CHARACTER | CHAR_LENGTH |
CHARACTER_LENGTH | CHECK | CLOSE |
COALESCE | COLLATE | COLLATION |
COLUMN | COMMIT | CONNECT |
CONNECTION | CONSTRAINT | CONSTRAINTS |
CONTINUE | CONVERT | CORRESPONDING |
COUNT | CREATE | CROSS |
CURRENT | CURRENT_DATE | CURRENT_TIME |
CURRENT_TIMESTAMP | CURRENT_USER | CURSOR |
DATE | DAY | DEALLOCATE |
DEC | DECIMAL | DECLARE |
DEFAULT | DEFERRABLE | DEFERRED |
DELETE | DESC | DESCRIBE |
DESCRIPTOR | DIAGNOSTICS | DISCONNECT |
DISTINCT | DOMAIN | DOUBLE |
DROP | ELSE | END |
END-EXEC | ESCAPE | EXCEPT |
EXCEPTION | EXEC | EXECUTE |
EXISTS | EXTERNAL | EXTRACT |
FALSE | FETCH | FIRST |
FLOAT | FOR | FOREIGN |
FOUND | FROM | FULL |
FUNCTION | GET | GLOBAL |
GO | GOTO | GRANT |
GROUP | HAVING | HOUR |
IDENTITY | IMMEDIATE | IN |
INDICATOR | INITIALLY | INNER |
INPUT | INSENSITIVE | INSERT |
INT | INTEGER | INTERSECT |
INTERVAL | INTO | IS |
ISOLATION | JOIN | KEY |
LANGUAGE | LAST | LEADING |
LEFT | LEVEL | LIKE |
LIMIT | LOCAL | LOWER |
MASK | MATCH | MAX |
MIN | MINUTE | MODULE |
MONTH | NAMES | NATIONAL |
NATURAL | NCHAR | NEXT |
NO | NOT | NLONGVARCHAR |
NULL | NULLIF | NUMERIC |
NVARCHAR | OCTET_LENGTH | OF |
OFFSET | ON | ONLY |
OPEN | OPTION | OR |
ORDER | OUTER | OUTPUT |
OVERLAPS | PAD | PARTIAL |
PASSWORD | POSITION | PRECISION |
PREPARE | PRESERVE | PRIMARY |
PRIOR | PRIVILEGES | PROCEDURE |
PUBLIC | READ | REAL |
REFERENCES | RELATIVE | RESTRICT |
REVERSE | REVOKE | RIGHT |
ROLLBACK | ROWS | SCHEMA |
SCROLL | SECOND | SECTION |
SELECT | SESSION | SESSION_USER |
SET | SIZE | SMALLIDENTITY |
SMALLINT | SOME | SPACE |
SQL | SQLCODE | SQLERROR |
SQLSTATE | STDEV | SUBSTRING |
SUM | SYSDATETIME | SYSUTCDATETIME |
SYSTEM_USER | TABLE | TEMPORARY |
THEN | TIME | TIMESTAMP |
TIMESTAMP2 | TIMEZONE_HOUR | TIMEZONE_MINUTE |
TO | TRAILING | TRANSACTION |
TRANSLATE | TRANSLATION | TRIM |
TRUE | TRY_CAST | UNION |
UNIQUE | UNKNOWN | UPDATE |
UPPER | USAGE | USER |
USING | VALUE | VALUES |
VARCHAR | VARYING | VIEW |
WHEN | WHENEVER | WHERE |
WITH | WORK | WRITE |
YEAR | ZONE |
Last modified date: 08/05/2026