SDMX Technical Vocabulary

General Terms

IDNameDescriptionSource
API API Application Program Interface UG
BILATERAL_EXCHANGE Bilateral exchange Exchange of data and/or metadata between a sending organisation and a receiving organisation where all aspects of the exchange process are agreed between counterparties, including the mechanism for exchange of data and metadata, the formats, the frequency or schedule, and the mode used for communications regarding the exchange. MCV
CSV CSV Comma Separated Value. A type of file format where the data values are separated by a known character. CSV has become a generic terms and the values may be separated by a character other than a comma (e.g. a space) UG
CARTESIAN_PRODUCT Cartesian Product The theoretical number of series that is possible by the combination of all possible values of the constituents of the key of the series. For instance if the key has three components, each with 100 possible values then the Cartesian product will have 100x100x100 possible keys. IM
CLASSIFICATION Classification A set of discrete, exhaustive and mutually exclusive observations, which can be assigned to one or more variables to be measured in the collation and/or presentation of data. From Neuchâtel (b): The general concept of a structured list of mutually exclusive categories, each of which describes a possible value of the classification variable. Such a structured list may be linear or hierarchically structured. MCV
COMPACT_DATA_MESSAGE Compact Data Message Exchange of large data sets in a data structure definition-dependent form UG
COMPILING_AGENCY Compiling agency The organisation compiling the data being reported. MCV
CROSS_DOMAIN_CONCEPTS Cross-domain concepts List of standard concepts, covering structural and reference metadata, which should be used in several statistical domains wherever possible to enhance possibilities of the exchange of data and metadata between organisations. MCV
CROSS-SECTIONAL_DATA_MESSAGE Cross-sectional Data Message Exchange of many observation types in a data structure definition-dependent form UG
DATA Data Characteristics or information, usually numerical, that are collected through observation. MCV
DATA_SHARING Data Sharing Exchange of data and/or metadata in a situation involving the use of open, freely available data formats and where process patterns are known and standard. MCV
DATA_AND_METADATA_DISCOVERY Data and Metadata Discovery Searching and finding data or metadata IM
DATA_COLLECTION Data collection Systematic process of gathering data for official statistics. MCV
DATA_COMPILATION Data compilation Operations performed on data to derive new information according to a given set of rules. MCV
DATA_DISSEMINATION_AGENCY Data dissemination agency The organisation disseminating the data. MCV
DATA_ELEMENT Data element A unit of data for which the definition, identification, representation, and permissible values are specified by means of a set of attributes. (from ISO/IEC 11179) MCV
DATA_EXCHANGE Data exchange The process of sending and receiving data. MCV
DATA_INTERCHANGE Data interchange The process of sending and receiving data. MCV
DATA_PROVIDER_SERIES_KEY Data provider series key Identifier used by the data providers systems to distinguish between data series MCV
DATA_SET_IDENTIFIER Data set identifier Sequence of characters identifying the data set with which it is associated. MCV
DATABASE_SCHEMA Database Schema The structure of tables in a database. UG
DISCOVERY Discovery Searching and finding data or metadata UG
DISSEMINATION Dissemination Distribution or transmission of statistical data to users. MCV
DOMAIN_GROUPS Domain groups Groups comprised of international organisations and/or national agencies working, formally or informally, towards the development of international guidelines and recommendations relevant to one or more statistical subject matter domains. MCV
DRILL_DOWN Drill Down Navigation down the levels of a hierarchy from the broadest to the narrowest classification in the hierarchy IM
DUBLIN_CORE Dublin core The Dublin Core Metadata Initiative is an open forum engaged in the development of interoperable online metadata standards that support a broad range of purposes and business models. MCV
ENTITY Entity Any concrete or abstract thing that exists, did exist, or might exist, including associations among these things e.g. a person, object, event, idea, process, etc. MCV
FREQUENCY Frequency The time interval at which observations occur over a given time period. MCV
GESMES_TS GESMES/TS An organized set of bilateral exchanges, in which several data and metadata sending organizations or individuals agree to exchange the collected information with each other in a single, known format, and according to a single, known process. MCV
GATEWAY_EXCHANGE Gateway Exchange An organized set of bilateral exchanges, in which several data and metadata sending organizations or individuals agree to exchange the collected information with each other in a single, known format, and according to a single, known process. UG
GENERIC_DATA_MESSAGE Generic Data Message Conveys data in a form independent of a data structure definition. It is designed for data provision on websites and in any scenario where applications receiving the data may not have detailed understanding of the data set’s structure before they obtain the data set itself. UG
GENERIC_METADATA_MESSAGE Generic Metadata Message Conveys reference metadata in a form independent of a metadata structure definition UG
HTTP_POST HTTP POST Submission of data to a web service. IM
HTTPS HTTPS Secure HTTP. IM
HUB Hub A web service offering access to data or metadata UG
HYPERCUBE Hypercube   UG
ISO ISO International Standards Organisation UG
ISO_TC154 ISO TC154 The ISO technical committee responsible for the SDMX standard in the ISO process. UG
ISO_IEC_11179 ISO/IEC 11179 International ISO/IEC Standard on metadata registries addressing the semantics of data, the representation of data, and the registration of the descriptions of data. MCV
INCREMENTAL_UPDATE Incremental Update A set of data or metadata that may omit mandatory contents. IM
LANGUAGE Language A system of signs for communication, usually consisting of a vocabulary and rules [ISO 5127:2001, 1.1.2.01] MCV
LOGICAL_INTERFACE Logical Interface The specification of the behaviour of a system from a logical, rather than a physical, perspective IM
LOOSE_COUPLING_OF_APPLICATIONS Loose coupling of Applications   UG
METADATA Metadata Data that defines and describes other data. MCV
METADATA_REPORT_MESSAGE Metadata Report Message Exchange of reference metadata according to a specific MSD. UG
METADATA_REPOSITORY Metadata repository A logically central statistical repository that allows for querying, editing and managing of metadata. MCV
NSI NSI National Statistical Institute. UG
NOMENCLATURE Nomenclature A systematic naming of things or a system of names or terms for things. In classification, nomenclature involves a systemic naming of categories or items. MCV
OLAP OLAP Online Analytical Processing IM
OBJECT_TYPE Object Type A compilation of attributes (object elements) and behaviours (methods or subroutines) encapsulating an entity. UG
ONTOLOGY Ontology A formal specification of a conceptualisation, i.e. the objects, concepts and other entities that are assumed to exist in some area of interest and the relationships that hold among them. MCV
ORGANISATION_ROLE Organisation Role The function or activities of an organisation, in statistical processes such as collection, processing and dissemination. MCV
ORGANISATION_IDENTIFIER Organisation identifier The identifier assigned to an organization within an organization identification scheme, and unique within that scheme. MCV
PROVISIONING_METADATA Provisioning Metadata The structural constructs that describe the reporting or dissemination of data or metadata by a specified data provider according to a specific dataflow. IM
PULL_REPORTING_METHOD Pull (reporting method) The exchange of data or metadata by means of the data/metadata provider making the data/metadata available for download in an SDMX-conformant form, either as a file or as a result of processing an SDMX-conformant query, via a web service running on the provider’s server. UG
PUSH_REPORTING_METHOD Push (reporting method) The exchange of data or metadata by means of sending the data or metadata to the recipient. IM
REST_DATASOURCE_GEN REST datasource A data source that is accessible via a REST interface.
RSS RSS Really Simple Syndication. UG
RAW_DATA Raw Data Data that has been collected from a collection instrument (e.g. questionnaire or survey) but which has not been processed. IM
REFERENCE_METADATA_UG Reference Metadata metadata that describe the contents and the quality of the statistical data (conceptual metadata, describing the concepts used and their practical implementation, methodological metadata, describing methods used for the generation of the data, and quality metadata, describing the different quality dimensions of the resulting statistics, e.g. timeliness, accuracy). While these reference metadata exist and may be exchanged independently of the data (and its underlying structural metadata), they are often linked (“referenced”) to the data
REFERENCE_METADATA_MCV Reference Metadata Metadata describing the contents and the quality of the statistical data. MCV
REFERENCE_PERIOD Reference Period The period of time or point in time to which the measured observation is intended to refer. MCV
REGISTRATION_AUTHORITY Registration Authority Organization responsible for maintaining a register. MCV
REGISTRY_ITEM Registry Item Metadata item recorded in a Registry. MCV
REGISTRY_METAMODEL Registry Metamodel A metamodel specifying a metadata registry. MCV
REGISTRY_SERVICES Registry Services The activities of an SDMX registry from a user or application perspective. IM
REPORTING_AGENCY Reporting agency The organisation that supplies the data for a given instance of the statistics. MCV
ROLL_UP Roll Up The aggregation of observation values to a higher level in a hierarchic system of identification. IM
SDMX_INFORMATION_MODEL SDMX Information Model (SDMX-IM) A conceptual model of representing the human understanding of the scope and the constructs of the artefacts in an SDMX system. IM
SDMX_REGISTRY_INTERFACE SDMX Registry Interface The SDMX-ML specification of the allowable constructs that an SDMX Registry must consume or respond. IM
SDMX_REGISTRY SDMX registry An application which stores structural metadata and data and metadata registrations for maintenance and querying, and which can be used by any other application in the network with sufficient access privileges. IM
SDMX SDMX, Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange Set of technical standards and content-oriented guidelines, together with an IT architecture and tools, to be used for the efficient exchange and sharing of statistical data and metadata. MCV
SDMX_EDI SDMX-EDI UN/EDIFACT format for exchange of SDMX-structured data and metadata. MCV
SDMX_ML SDMX-ML XML format for the exchange of SDMX-structured data and metadata. MCV
SOAP SOAP Simple Object Access Protocol. This is an XML formatted “envelope” around the XML content submitted to a web service that gives information to the web service that will assist the web service in the processing of the submitted XML content. This may be as simple as identifying the function to be performed by the web
SQL SQL Structured Query Language UG
SCHEMA_BINDINGS Schema Bindings The rules by which SDMX-ML schemas are constructed from a Data Structure Definition or a Metadata Structure Definition. UG
SENDING_ORGANISATION Sending organisation Agency that sends data to one or more receiving agencies during a data exchange. MCV
STATISTICAL_CONCEPT_MCV Statistical concept A statistical characteristic of data. MCV
STATISTICAL_CONCEPT_UG Statistical concept A statistical characteristic of a time series or an observation. It can be coded (i.e. taking values from a code list) or uncoded.
STATISTICAL_MESSAGE Statistical message A message carrying statistical data.
STATISTICAL_METADATA Statistical metadata Data about statistical data. MCV
STATISTICAL_METADATA_SYSTEM Statistical metadata system A data processing system that uses, stores and produces statistical metadata. MCV
STRUCTURAL_METADATA_MCV Structural Metadata Metadata that act as identifiers and descriptors of the data. MCV
STRUCTURAL_METADATA_UG Structural Metadata Those metadata acting as identifiers and descriptors of the data, such as names of variables or dimensions of statistical cubes. Data must be associated to some structural metadata, otherwise it becomes impossible to properly identify, retrieve and browse the data UG
STRUCTURAL_METADATA_REPOSITORY Structural Metadata Repository A storage medium for structural metadata. IM
STRUCTURAL_DEFINITION Structural definition Statistical concepts, key families and code lists defined by a centre institution (usually for the exchange of statistical information with its partners). MCV
SUBSCRIPTION_AND_NOTIFICATION_SERVICE Subscription and Notification Service A registry web service that supports subscription and notification IM
SYNTAX Syntax The relationships among characters or groups of characters, independent of their meanings or the manner of their interpretation and use; the structure of expressions in a language, and the rules governing the structure of a language. MCV
UTF_8 UTF-8 A character set used in data processing systems. UG
UTILITY_DATA_MESSAGE Utility Data Message For schema-based functions, such as validation, in a data structure definition-dependent form UG
VALUE_DOMAIN Value Domain A set of permissible values. MCV
VALUE_MEANING Value Meaning The meaning or semantic content of a value.
WEB_PORTAL Web Portal a single place on the Internet where users can come to get all of the data and metadata for a particular domain, or for a topic or set of related topics UG
WEB_SERVICE Web Service A service made available on the Internet accessed via an API (application programme interface) which, in SDMX, use either REST (URL parameterised) or SOAP (XML) interfaces. UG
WILDCARD Wildcard An indication that the content of a construct in a query is deemed to be “all”. IM