Filename Extension: .6nf
6NF File Format is a new bitemporal, sixth-normal-form (6NF)-inspired data exchange format designed for DWH and for reporting. It replaces complex hierarchical formats like XBRL, XML, JSON, and YAML.
- Database Friendly Flat Structure: No nested objects or arrays. No need for parsing
- 6NF Compatibility: Direct mapping to 6NF database tables. No need for normalization
- Bitemporal Database Compatibility: All data includes valid_from and recorded_at timestamps
- UTC Time Standard: All timestamps must be in UTC format, denoted by the 'Z' suffix (e.g., 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z)
- Struct Grouping: Multiple attributes with shared temporal context
- Compactness: Uses Crockford’s Base32 - encoded UUIDv7 for identifiers
- Readability: Clean syntax with minimal punctuation
- PostgreSQL Style: Uses snake_case notation of identifiers (names)
- Case Sensitivity: Keywords are UPPERCASE and case-sensitive. Identifiers (names) are lowercase and case-sensitive
- UTF-8 Encoding: Files use UTF-8 encoding
6nf = [version] { entity | reference | attribute | attribute_ref | struct | relationship } ;
version = "VERSION" number "\n" ;
entity = "ENTITY" entity_name entity_id "\n" ;
reference = "REFERENCE" name reference_id value "\n" ;
attribute = "ATTRIBUTE_OF" entity_name entity_id name value valid_from recorded_at "\n" ;
attribute_ref = "ATTRIBUTE_REF_OF" entity_name entity_id name reference_id valid_from recorded_at "\n" ;
struct = "STRUCT_OF" entity_name entity_id name valid_from recorded_at "\n"
{ name (value | reference_id) "\n" } ;
relationship = "RELATIONSHIP" name relationship_id valid_from recorded_at "\n"
{ name ( entity_id | reference_id ) "\n" } ;
value = string | number | iso8601 | "true" | "false" ;
string = "\"" { character } "\"" ;
number = [ "-" ] digit { digit } [ "." digit { digit } ] ;
valid_from = iso8601 ;
recorded_at = iso8601 ;
entity_name = ( letter | "_" ) { letter | digit | "_" } ;
name = ( letter | "_" ) { letter | digit | "_" } ;
entity_id = 26 * base32_char ;
reference_id = 26 * base32_char ;
relationship_id = 26 * base32_char ;
base32_char = "0" | "1" | "2" | "3" | "4" | "5" | "6" | "7" | "8" | "9"
| "A" | "B" | "C" | "D" | "E" | "F" | "G" | "H" | "J" | "K"
| "M" | "N" | "P" | "Q" | "R" | "S" | "T" | "V" | "W" | "X" | "Y" | "Z" ;VERSION 7
ENTITY bank 01K3Y0690AJCRFEJ2J49X6ZECY
REFERENCE country_code 01K3Y07Z94DGJWVMB0JG4YSDBV "US"
ATTRIBUTE_OF bank 01K3Y0690AJCRFEJ2J49X6ZECY bank_name "Bank Alpha" 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
ATTRIBUTE_REF_OF bank 01K3Y0690AJCRFEJ2J49X6ZECY country_code 01K3Y07Z94DGJWVMB0JG4YSDBV 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
STRUCT_OF bank 01K3Y0690AJCRFEJ2J49X6ZECY bank_address 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
country_code 01K3Y07Z94DGJWVMB0JG4YSDBV
street "123 Main St"
city "New York"
zip "10001"
ENTITY account 01K3Y0G45CP4GMGE94BYQ09DFM
ATTRIBUTE_OF account 01K3Y0G45CP4GMGE94BYQ09DFM account_balance 100000.50 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
ATTRIBUTE_OF account 01K3Y0G45CP4GMGE94BYQ09DFM account_expiration 2025-12-31T23:59:59Z 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
RELATIONSHIP bank_x_account 01K3Y0NR1Q3KTA9A6J9KYPK6YB 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z 2023-01-01T12:00:00Z
bank 01K3Y0690AJCRFEJ2J49X6ZECY
account 01K3Y0G45CP4GMGE94BYQ09DFM