CREATE Clause in GQL

<h2 id="create-clause-in-gql" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE Clause in GQL <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-clause-in-gql" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE Clause in GQL"> Share link </button> </h2><div id="headingShareModal" class="heading-share-modal" role="dialog" aria-modal="true" aria-labelledby="headingShareTitle" hidden> <div class="hsm-dialog" role="document"> <div class="hsm-header"> <h2 id="headingShareTitle" class="h6 mb-0 fw-bold">Share this section</h2> <button type="button" class="hsm-close" aria-label="Close"> </button> </div> <div class="hsm-body"> <label for="headingShareInput" class="form-label small text-muted mb-1 text-uppercase fw-bold" style="font-size: 0.7rem; letter-spacing: 0.5px;">Permalink</label> <div class="input-group mb-4 hsm-url-group"> <input id="headingShareInput" type="text" class="form-control font-monospace" readonly aria-readonly="true" style="font-size: 0.85rem;" /> <button class="btn btn-primary hsm-copy" type="button" aria-label="Copy" title="Copy"> </button> </div> <div class="small fw-bold mb-2 text-muted text-uppercase" style="font-size: 0.7rem; 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It allows you to create nodes, relationships, and complete patterns with properties and labels in a single operation. Geode implements the CREATE clause according to the ISO/IEC 39075:2024 GQL standard. <h3 id="introduction-to-create" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Introduction to CREATE <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="introduction-to-create" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Introduction to CREATE"> Share link </button> </h3>In graph databases, data is represented as nodes (entities) and relationships (connections between entities). The CREATE clause enables you to build your graph structure by inserting these elements along with their properties and labels. Key characteristics of CREATE: <ul> <li>Atomic Operations: Each CREATE statement executes as a single atomic operation</li> <li>Pattern Support: Create entire patterns (multiple nodes and relationships) in one statement</li> <li>Property Assignment: Set properties during creation</li> <li>Label Assignment: Assign one or more labels to nodes</li> <li>Relationship Types: Define relationship types and directions</li> <li>Returning Created Elements: Access created elements for further operations</li> </ul> <h3 id="creating-nodes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Creating Nodes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="creating-nodes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Creating Nodes"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="basic-node-creation" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Basic Node Creation <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="basic-node-creation" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Basic Node Creation"> Share link </button> </h4>Create a simple node without labels or properties. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create an empty node CREATE (); -- Create a node and return it CREATE (n) RETURN n; </code></pre></div> <h4 id="nodes-with-labels" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Nodes with Labels <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="nodes-with-labels" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Nodes with Labels"> Share link </button> </h4>Labels categorize nodes and enable efficient querying. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create a node with a single label CREATE (p:Person); -- Create a node with multiple labels CREATE (e:Person:Employee:Manager); -- Create and return CREATE (u:User) RETURN u; </code></pre></div> <h4 id="nodes-with-properties" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Nodes with Properties <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="nodes-with-properties" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Nodes with Properties"> Share link </button> </h4>Properties store data on nodes as key-value pairs. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create a node with properties CREATE (p:Person { name: 'Alice', age: 30, email: 'alice@example.com' }); -- Create with various data types CREATE (p:Product { name: 'Laptop', price: 999.99, in_stock: true, tags: ['electronics', 'computers'], specs: {cpu: 'M3', ram: '16GB'} }); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="creating-multiple-nodes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Creating Multiple Nodes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="creating-multiple-nodes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Creating Multiple Nodes"> Share link </button> </h4>Create several nodes in a single statement. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create multiple nodes CREATE (a:Person {name: 'Alice'}), (b:Person {name: 'Bob'}), (c:Person {name: 'Charlie'}); -- Create with UNWIND for dynamic data UNWIND $users AS user_data CREATE (u:User { name: user_data.name, email: user_data.email }); </code></pre></div> <h3 id="creating-relationships" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Creating Relationships <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="creating-relationships" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Creating Relationships"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="basic-relationship-creation" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Basic Relationship Creation <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="basic-relationship-creation" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Basic Relationship Creation"> Share link </button> </h4>Relationships connect nodes and have a type and direction. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create a relationship between existing nodes MATCH (a:Person {name: 'Alice'}), (b:Person {name: 'Bob'}) CREATE (a)-[:KNOWS]->(b); -- Create with relationship variable MATCH (a:Person {name: 'Alice'}), (b:Person {name: 'Bob'}) CREATE (a)-[r:FRIENDS_WITH]->(b) RETURN r; </code></pre></div> <h4 id="relationships-with-properties" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Relationships with Properties <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="relationships-with-properties" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Relationships with Properties"> Share link </button> </h4>Relationships can store properties just like nodes. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create relationship with properties MATCH (a:Person {name: 'Alice'}), (b:Person {name: 'Bob'}) CREATE (a)-[:FRIENDS_WITH { since: date('2020-01-15'), closeness: 'best_friend' }]->(b); -- E-commerce example MATCH (c:Customer {id: $customer_id}), (p:Product {id: $product_id}) CREATE (c)-[:PURCHASED { date: datetime(), quantity: $qty, price: $price }]->(p); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="relationship-directions" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Relationship Directions <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="relationship-directions" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Relationship Directions"> Share link </button> </h4>GQL relationships are always directed, but can be traversed in any direction. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Outgoing relationship CREATE (a)-[:FOLLOWS]->(b); -- Incoming relationship (conceptually) CREATE (a)<-[:FOLLOWED_BY]-(b); -- Note: In GQL, relationships are stored with direction -- Query traversal can ignore direction using -[:TYPE]- </code></pre></div> <h3 id="creating-patterns" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Creating Patterns <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="creating-patterns" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Creating Patterns"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="complete-pattern-creation" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Complete Pattern Creation <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="complete-pattern-creation" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Complete Pattern Creation"> Share link </button> </h4>Create nodes and relationships together in a single pattern. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create a complete pattern CREATE (a:Person {name: 'Alice'})-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person {name: 'Bob'}); -- Create a chain CREATE (a:User {name: 'Alice'}) -[:POSTED]->(p:Post {title: 'Hello World'}) -[:HAS_COMMENT]->(c:Comment {text: 'Great post!'}); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="complex-patterns" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Complex Patterns <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="complex-patterns" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Complex Patterns"> Share link </button> </h4>Build intricate graph structures in one operation. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create a small social network CREATE (alice:Person {name: 'Alice', age: 30}), (bob:Person {name: 'Bob', age: 25}), (charlie:Person {name: 'Charlie', age: 35}), (alice)-[:FRIENDS_WITH {since: 2020}]->(bob), (bob)-[:FRIENDS_WITH {since: 2021}]->(charlie), (charlie)-[:FRIENDS_WITH {since: 2019}]->(alice); -- Create an order with items CREATE (o:Order { id: $order_id, date: datetime(), status: 'pending' }) WITH o UNWIND $items AS item MATCH (p:Product {id: item.product_id}) CREATE (o)-[:CONTAINS { quantity: item.quantity, price: item.price }]->(p); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pattern-with-existing-nodes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pattern with Existing Nodes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pattern-with-existing-nodes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pattern with Existing Nodes"> Share link </button> </h4>Combine MATCH and CREATE for patterns involving existing data. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Connect existing user to new post MATCH (u:User {id: $user_id}) CREATE (u)-[:AUTHORED]->(p:Post { title: $title, content: $content, created_at: datetime() }) RETURN p; -- Create relationships between existing nodes MATCH (p:Product), (c:Category) WHERE p.category_name = c.name CREATE (p)-[:IN_CATEGORY]->(c); </code></pre></div> <h3 id="create-with-other-clauses" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE with Other Clauses <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-with-other-clauses" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE with Other Clauses"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="create-with-match" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE with MATCH <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-with-match" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE with MATCH"> Share link </button> </h4>Use MATCH to find existing nodes before creating. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Find and connect MATCH (u:User {email: $email}) MATCH (g:Group {name: $group_name}) CREATE (u)-[:MEMBER_OF {joined: datetime()}]->(g) RETURN u, g; -- Conditional pattern creation MATCH (a:Person), (b:Person) WHERE a.city = b.city AND a <> b AND NOT (a)-[:LIVES_NEAR]-(b) CREATE (a)-[:LIVES_NEAR]->(b); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="create-with-with" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE with WITH <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-with-with" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE with WITH"> Share link </button> </h4>Chain operations using WITH. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create node then create relationships CREATE (p:Project {name: $project_name}) WITH p MATCH (u:User {id: $owner_id}) CREATE (u)-[:OWNS]->(p) WITH p, u MATCH (t:Team {id: $team_id}) CREATE (t)-[:WORKS_ON]->(p) RETURN p, u, t; </code></pre></div> <h4 id="create-with-return" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE with RETURN <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-with-return" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE with RETURN"> Share link </button> </h4>Access created elements in the result. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Return created node CREATE (u:User { name: $name, email: $email, created_at: datetime() }) RETURN u.name AS name, elementId(u) AS id; -- Return created relationship MATCH (a:Person {name: 'Alice'}), (b:Person {name: 'Bob'}) CREATE (a)-[r:KNOWS {since: date()}]->(b) RETURN type(r) AS relationship_type, r.since AS since; </code></pre></div> <h4 id="create-with-parameters" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE with Parameters <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-with-parameters" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE with Parameters"> Share link </button> </h4>Use parameters for safe, efficient creation. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Parameterized node creation CREATE (u:User { name: $name, email: $email, age: $age }); -- Parameterized pattern MATCH (author:User {id: $author_id}) CREATE (author)-[:WROTE]->(post:Post { title: $title, content: $content, tags: $tags }); </code></pre></div> <h3 id="bulk-data-creation" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Bulk Data Creation <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="bulk-data-creation" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Bulk Data Creation"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="using-unwind" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Using UNWIND <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="using-unwind" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Using UNWIND"> Share link </button> </h4>Create multiple elements from a list. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create many nodes UNWIND $users AS user_data CREATE (u:User { name: user_data.name, email: user_data.email, department: user_data.department }); -- Create nodes with relationships UNWIND $friendships AS f MATCH (a:User {id: f.user_id}), (b:User {id: f.friend_id}) CREATE (a)-[:FRIENDS_WITH {since: f.since}]->(b); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="batch-processing" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Batch Processing <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="batch-processing" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Batch Processing"> Share link </button> </h4>Efficiently create large amounts of data. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Process in batches (application-side pattern) -- Execute this query for each batch of 1000 records UNWIND $batch AS record CREATE (n:DataPoint { timestamp: record.ts, value: record.val, sensor_id: record.sensor }); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="importing-from-external-data" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Importing from External Data <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="importing-from-external-data" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Importing from External Data"> Share link </button> </h4>Create graph structure from imported data. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- From CSV-like structure UNWIND $rows AS row MERGE (source:Location {name: row.from}) MERGE (target:Location {name: row.to}) CREATE (source)-[:CONNECTED_TO { distance: row.distance, transport: row.mode }]->(target); </code></pre></div> <h3 id="create-vs-merge" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE vs MERGE <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-vs-merge" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE vs MERGE"> Share link </button> </h3>Understanding when to use CREATE vs MERGE. <h4 id="create-behavior" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> CREATE Behavior <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="create-behavior" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: CREATE Behavior"> Share link </button> </h4>CREATE always creates new elements, potentially causing duplicates. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- This creates duplicates if run twice CREATE (u:User {email: 'alice@example.com', name: 'Alice'}); CREATE (u:User {email: 'alice@example.com', name: 'Alice'}); -- Result: Two separate User nodes </code></pre></div> <h4 id="merge-for-idempotent-operations" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> MERGE for Idempotent Operations <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="merge-for-idempotent-operations" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: MERGE for Idempotent Operations"> Share link </button> </h4>MERGE creates only if the pattern does not exist. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- This is idempotent - safe to run multiple times MERGE (u:User {email: 'alice@example.com'}) ON CREATE SET u.name = 'Alice', u.created_at = datetime() ON MATCH SET u.last_seen = datetime(); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="when-to-use-each" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> When to Use Each <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="when-to-use-each" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: When to Use Each"> Share link </button> </h4><table> <thead> <tr> <th>Scenario</th> <th>Recommendation</th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td>Initial data load</td> <td>CREATE (faster)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Incremental updates</td> <td>MERGE (prevents duplicates)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Event logging</td> <td>CREATE (each event is unique)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Entity creation</td> <td>MERGE with unique constraint</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Relationship creation</td> <td>Depends on domain semantics</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <h3 id="best-practices" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Best Practices <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="best-practices" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Best Practices"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="data-integrity" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Data Integrity <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="data-integrity" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Data Integrity"> Share link </button> </h4><ol> <li>Use Constraints: Define uniqueness constraints before bulk creation</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create constraint first CREATE CONSTRAINT user_email_unique ON (u:User) ASSERT u.email IS UNIQUE; -- Then use MERGE for safety MERGE (u:User {email: $email}) ON CREATE SET u.name = $name; </code></pre></div><ol start="2"> <li>Validate Data: Check data before creating</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Create only if valid MATCH (u:User {id: $user_id}) WHERE u.active = true CREATE (u)-[:PERFORMED]->(a:Action {type: $action_type, timestamp: datetime()}); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="performance-optimization" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Performance Optimization <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="performance-optimization" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Performance Optimization"> Share link </button> </h4><ol> <li>Batch Creations: Group multiple creates into transactions</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- More efficient than individual queries UNWIND range(1, 1000) AS i CREATE (n:TestNode {index: i}); </code></pre></div><ol start="2"> <li>Index Before Bulk Load: Create indexes before loading data</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">CREATE INDEX user_email ON User(email); CREATE INDEX product_sku ON Product(sku); -- Then perform bulk load </code></pre></div><ol start="3"> <li>Use Parameters: Parameterized queries are cached and reused</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Query plan is cached CREATE (u:User {name: $name, email: $email}); </code></pre></div> <h4 id="modeling-best-practices" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Modeling Best Practices <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="modeling-best-practices" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Modeling Best Practices"> Share link </button> </h4><ol> <li>Meaningful Labels: Use descriptive, singular label names</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Good CREATE (p:Product), (c:Customer), (o:Order); -- Avoid CREATE (p:Products), (c:Cust), (o:Ord); </code></pre></div><ol start="2"> <li>Descriptive Relationship Types: Use verb phrases in UPPER_CASE</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Good CREATE (a)-[:PURCHASED]->(b); CREATE (a)-[:REPORTS_TO]->(b); CREATE (a)-[:AUTHORED]->(b); -- Avoid CREATE (a)-[:rel]->(b); CREATE (a)-[:connection]->(b); </code></pre></div><ol start="3"> <li>Property Naming: Use consistent naming conventions</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Consistent snake_case CREATE (p:Product { product_name: 'Widget', unit_price: 29.99, created_at: datetime() }); </code></pre></div> <h3 id="error-handling" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Error Handling <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="error-handling" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Error Handling"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="common-errors" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Common Errors <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="common-errors" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Common Errors"> Share link </button> </h4><div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">-- Constraint violation -- Error: Node already exists with label 'User' and property 'email' = 'alice@example.com' CREATE (u:User {email: 'alice@example.com'}); -- When constraint exists and node exists -- Invalid property type -- Error: Type mismatch: expected Integer but was String CREATE (n:Node {count: 'five'}); -- If schema requires integer </code></pre></div> <h4 id="handling-errors-in-applications" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Handling Errors in Applications <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="handling-errors-in-applications" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Handling Errors in Applications"> Share link </button> </h4><div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-python" data-lang="python"># Python example from geode_client import Client, ConstraintViolationError async def create_user(name, email): client = Client(host="localhost", port=3141) async with client.connection() as conn: try: result, _ = await conn.query(""" CREATE (u:User {name: $name, email: $email}) RETURN u """, {"name": name, "email": email}) return result.bindings[0]['u'] except ConstraintViolationError: # Handle duplicate return await get_user_by_email(email) </code></pre></div> <h3 id="related-topics" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Related Topics <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="related-topics" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Related Topics"> Share link </button> </h3><ul> <li><a href="/tags/set/" >SET Clause</a> : Updating properties after creation</li> <li><a href="/tags/delete/" >DELETE Clause</a> : Removing nodes and relationships</li> <li><a href="/tags/match/" >MATCH Clause</a> : Finding existing elements</li> <li><a href="/tags/merge/" >MERGE</a> : Idempotent creation</li> <li><a href="/tags/gql-reference/" >GQL Reference</a> : Complete GQL language reference</li> <li><a href="/tags/data-modeling/" >Data Modeling</a> : Graph modeling best practices</li> <li><a href="/tags/constraints/" >Constraints</a> : Ensuring data integrity</li> </ul> <h3 id="further-reading" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Further Reading <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="further-reading" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Further Reading"> Share link </button> </h3><ul> <li>GQL Tutorial - Creating Data: <code>/docs/gql-tutorial/creating-data/</code></li> <li>Data Modeling Guide: <code>/docs/guides/graph-modeling/</code></li> <li>Bulk Import Guide: <code>/docs/operations/bulk-import/</code></li> <li>Constraint Reference: <code>/docs/reference/constraints/</code></li> <li>Transaction Management: <code>/docs/transactions/overview/</code></li> </ul>

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