characterid

CharacterID, often written as characterid, is a term used in information systems to denote a unique identifier assigned to a character entity within a software environment. The character in question may be a person, a non-player character in a video game, a literary figure in a publishing workflow, or any definable entity treated as a character in a database or application logic. A CharacterID is distinct from a character’s name, title, or other descriptive attributes, serving as a stable reference that remains constant even if names change.

In practice, CharacterIDs are typically primary keys or surrogate keys stored in a database. They are designed to be unique within a given scope (global, project-wide, or per database) and are often immutable. Formats vary; common choices include integers (auto-incremented), UUIDs/GUIDs, or other alphanumeric strings. Generation methods include database auto-increment, UUID version 4, or hash-based schemes.

CharacterIDs enable efficient querying, indexing, and data integrity by providing a single point of reference for related data such as attributes, inventory, relationships, and events. They are not standardized across systems, and their semantics depend on the application’s data model and access controls. For privacy or portability, some systems separate internal CharacterIDs from externally visible identifiers. See also unique identifier, primary key, surrogate key, UUID, and character encoding.