propertyIdentifier

PropertyIdentifier is a concept used in data modeling and metadata management to denote a stable, unique token assigned to a property—an attribute or characteristic—within a dataset, ontology, database, or information system. It serves as the unambiguous reference for the property across contexts, independent of the property's human-readable label.

In semantic technologies, a property is typically identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) or an IRI; in more lightweight catalogs, a CURIE or a persistent code may be used. Examples include a Dublin Core property such as title identified by http://purl.org/dc/terms/title, or a property in a schema.org vocabulary. In relational databases, the concept maps to a column, where the property identifier may correspond to a column name or a surrogate key in metadata catalogs. In APIs, a field named propertyIdentifier might store a URI, UUID, or code that uniquely identifies the property within a domain.

Characteristics of propertyIdentifiers include uniqueness, persistence, and resolvability. Best practices involve using stable, globally unique identifiers; preferring URIs that resolve to machine-readable descriptions; maintaining a namespace and versioning; documenting the semantics and scope of each propertyIdentifier; and avoiding changes to identifiers after publication to preserve referential integrity.

Property identifiers are a key element in data interoperability, enabling cross-dataset queries and integration across domains. When designing a schema, it is advisable to align propertyIdentifiers with existing vocabularies and provide clear documentation of their meaning and scope.