VariedFrom

VariedFrom is a term used in data modeling and annotation to describe a relationship in which one item diverges from a reference form or baseline. It is a directional binary relation intended to capture variation across sources, time, or contexts within a unified schema. In practice, VariedFrom is applied to items such as data values, linguistic forms, or recorded observations that are related to a standard or parent variant but differ in one or more attributes.

In annotation and knowledge graphs, VariedFrom is represented as VariedFrom(child, parent), where the child is the variant and the parent is the reference. The relation can encompass different kinds of variation, including numerical deviations (price or measurements), categorical changes (variant labels), or attribute-level differences (format, language, or encoding). Projects may attach metadata to a VariedFrom link to describe the nature and magnitude of variation, such as delta values, confidence scores, or provenance details.

Origin and usage are not standardized across disciplines; VariedFrom emerged as a compact label in discussions of cross-source integration and historical registries. Its usage tends to be domain-specific, with definitions refined to suit data governance, version control, or linguistic corpora annotation. When used, it helps analysts trace how a given item relates to a reference, quantify deviation, and enable comparative analyses while preserving linkage to the original reference.

See also: Variation, baseline, deviation, provenance, cross-source comparison.