Waiting for SQL:202y: Stockholm (BMA) meeting report
The Stockholm BMA meeting for SQL:202y advanced new SQL features including enhanced temporal support, improved JSON, and property graph queries. Discussions covered polymorphic table functions and ratification of previous decisions toward the next standard revision.
Background
- SQL is the standard query language for relational databases (PostgreSQL, Oracle, MySQL, etc.), governed by ISO/IEC. Major revisions appear roughly every 3-5 years (e.g., SQL:2016, SQL:2023). The next revision, informally called "SQL:202y", is currently being drafted.
- This is a meeting report from an international standards working group (ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32/WG 3). The author, Peter Eisentraut, is a core PostgreSQL developer and long-time participant in the SQL standards process.
- The meeting took place in Stockholm (BMA = British Computer Society's *British Medical Association* — likely a venue name confusion; the meeting was in Stockholm). Key topics include proposals for new SQL features such as enhanced temporal (time-based) data support, property graph queries (for graph databases), and multi-model data capabilities.
- The blog explains what was discussed at this specific meeting, what progress (or stalemate) occurred on various features, and gives a sense of how slowly and deliberately the SQL standard evolves — important context for database developers who need to know what future SQL syntax to expect.