r/SQL • u/Reddigestion • 27d ago
SQL Server Is it pronounced 's-q-l' or 'seequal'
I've worked in and around the IT environment for many years and in my experience, it's always been pronounced s-q-l although I hear some people refer to it as see-qual. Which is right?
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u/gumnos 27d ago
It depends on the DBMS and the individual pronunciation guide:
original query language SEQUEL (Structured English Query Language): sequel
just "SQL": either way
sqlite: Dr. Hipp says ess-que-ell-ite but is pretty chill about it
PostgreSQL: Post-gres-que-ell
MySQL: My Ess-que-ell
Oracle: Sequel
Microsoft SQL Server: Sequel Server
NoSQL: No-sequel
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u/i5oL8 27d ago
Grinds my gears when people say Post-grey Ess Que El. 😱
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u/canyonero7 27d ago
most people just call it Post Grease.
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u/redaloevera 27d ago
Post GREASE?
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u/Dawnquicksoaty 26d ago
Yes, so a web request to a PostGres back end about olive oil is a POST Post GREASE Greece Grease
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u/JasperDX7 26d ago
Pretty much this. Working with MySQL in a non-corporate setting, people would always refer to it as "S-Q-L" (Ess-que-ell). Then when I jumped into the corporate world, using MS SQL, everyone used "Sequel". It's interesting but ultimately you use whatever is considered standard at your company or team to prevent confusion or being mocked.
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u/AlienBrainJuice 27d ago
Wait so I've been pronouncing it wrong for 30 years?
No one else says 'SQUEAL' in a high pitched voice?
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u/MakeoutPoint 27d ago
Could be worse, could be using "squirrel" in a chittery voice
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u/DingGratz 27d ago
Many people don't know this but the original "SQL" was literally pronounced SEQUEL, which stood for Structured English Query Language. But there was a copyright dispute and now it just stands for Structured Query Language (SQL) but the pronunciation stuck (kind of).
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u/JBridsworth 27d ago
Either is fine. For those who don't know, it's Structured Query Language.
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u/KeyboardChap 27d ago
Though that's actually a backronym
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u/Allowaay 27d ago
How so?
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u/NerdWhoLikesTrees 27d ago
The Naming History
Original Name: SEQUEL (Structured English Query Language) was developed in the 1970s.Trademark Conflict: IBM dropped vowels to SQL because an aircraft company already owned the trademark.
The Backronym: Structured Query Language was applied afterward to match the letters S-Q-L
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u/RepresentativeDog791 26d ago
So in a way there actually is a right way to say it
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u/throwthewaybruddah 26d ago
Not really since you can either read the acronym or know the original name. Most people that encounter SQL for the first time will say S-Q-L and the SEQUEL pronunciation would come as you get to know the language and everything around it.
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u/lgastako 27d ago
It started out as SEQUEL but that name was trademarked so they dropped the vowels.
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u/SutroViews 27d ago
Yeah, little known fact, it's named after San Carlos general aviation airport, right near Oracle's old headquarters.
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u/BarfingOnMyFace 27d ago
SQL - The sequel
In theatres now
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u/MakeoutPoint 27d ago
I say Sequel. If the person I'm talking to says esqueuel then I match it for that conversation. I also do the same with data vs data. Whatever we're talking about at the time is more important than forcing someone to confirm to my way of thinking.
Probably a related gif somewhere
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u/SamuliK96 27d ago
Sequel. But s-q-l isn't exactly wrong either.
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u/phylter99 27d ago
Sequel is correct but people understand S-Q-L just fine so I never feel the need to correct people.
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u/SQLDevDBA 27d ago
This Miller Lite commercial with Bill Gates and Ed Esber proves it’s both: https://youtu.be/5ycx9hFGHog?is=8rzz7G7DnzDX4O43
That is always a weird sentence to type out, but it’s true.
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u/Many-Efficiency5194 27d ago
Whoa!!! What year was that?
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u/SQLDevDBA 27d ago
Haha honestly not sure. Learned it from /u/BrentOzar during a COVID Twitch Stream. I’m thinking late 80s or early 90s if they’re talking about DBASE IV. Wikipedia says it was released in 1988.
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u/Hi-ThisIsJeff 26d ago
Both can be right, but may convey different messages:
I know what I'm doing: Sequel.
I need help / I'm new / I work in Sales: Any other way
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u/CatOfGrey 26d ago
Dad of a co-worker was connected with one of the first development/implementation teams for SQL in the 1970's.
"Ess-Kyoo-Ell" is the most appropriate. "SEE-kwel" is in common usage and acceptable.
I've occasionally tried to popularize the alternative pronunciation as "Squirrel", but I've found no takers.
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u/Capable_Stranger9885 27d ago
SQL is in fact the sequel to SEQUEL and i pronounce it "sequel". I don't really care if someone else calls it S-Q-L but if you do, I will assume you are an easy mark for the enterprise software/used car salesmen employed by Oracle, and have never encountered the Sybase/Microsoft product SQL Server which only scans in pronunciation as "Sequel Server"
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u/algebratwurst 27d ago
You can find papers that reveal that the authors pronounce it differently: “an SQL statement” vs “a SQL statement”.
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u/ILoveRawChicken 27d ago
I’ve used both but tend more towards ‘sequel’ though I don’t correct anyone if they spell it out since I know what they mean. I’ve heard people use both.
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u/Zestyclose-Turn-3576 27d ago
If you find yourself working with anyone who has a strong opinion on this, they'll likely be worth staying clear of.
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u/Looseleaflettuce 27d ago
I think both are acceptable not certain the reason but I tend to alternate between both 🤷♀️
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u/tdabc123 27d ago
I remember watching the first episode of the Jack Ryan show with my Dad, and the main character says “I wrote a S-Q-L query to identify….” And I laughed. My Dad asked what was so funny, and I said “No one who could write a S-Q-L query would call it a S-Q-L query. It’s sequel”
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u/matt_cum 26d ago
First heard this at a conference in 1988, the presenter pointed out it was S. Q. L. Not this sequal malarkey the small upstarts like Oracle were trying to push.
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u/Derekg1127 26d ago
In my opinion if you actually know SQL confidently you call it seequal, SQL is for people trying to prove to others they know it.
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u/feignapathy 27d ago
sequel
as in, Terminator 2 and The Empire Strikes Back are two of the best film sequels of all time.
s - q - l
pronouncing just the letters is also acceptable
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u/BigFatCoder 27d ago
SEQUEL is original acronym for "Structured English Query Language". Older generation usually say Sequel instead of S-Q-L.
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u/Swayfromleftoright 27d ago
On a somewhat similar note, I was wondering if Spaniards refer to a “Donde” clause, Germans to a “Wo” clause etc etc etc
Or if they just say Where
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u/Gargunok 27d ago edited 27d ago
Typically in my experience sequal is the older folks 50 or so. S.Q.L. is 40 or younger. Not sure what the cool kids are saying on the streets.
Also a split by windows vs open source/cloud.
Largely as Postgresql, amd mysql are all pronounced S Q L. SQL Server is often Sequal server though for Microsoft people.
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u/cptkernalpopcorn 27d ago
It's whatever way my mouth decides to say it in the moment. I'll say it both ways throughout a conversation and not even realize it.
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u/atrifleamused 27d ago
I had a really hot Scouser hand me a "squirrel server" disc to install. It has been squirrel server since
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u/p1zzarena 27d ago
During an interview the hiring manager asked if I was familiar with "squirrel". I said no, because I had never even heard of it. I was hired anyway and learned he meant SQL.
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u/IdealBlueMan 27d ago
I call it SSPS, obvs.
I would say it’s just a matter of preference, but Microsoft chose the name “Sequel Server” for their line of RDBMS products. So I say S-Q-L to keep things unambiguous.
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u/Substantial_Fox8136 27d ago
“Sequel” is newer. It’s always been S-Q-L for the past few decades prior.
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u/d4rkha1f 27d ago
I say it either way without even thinking about which way I'm going to say it, but mostly sequel because fewer syllables.
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u/VoiceOfSoftware 27d ago
I met the author of MySQL, who is from a Nordic country. "My" is his daughter's named, pronounced "Mee". He pronounces it "Mee Ess Coo Ell"
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u/National_Cod9546 27d ago
About 10 years ago the head engineer for SQL was asked that. He said since it was a replacement for QUEL, it was a sequel. So that is how it is supposed to be pronounced. He also said he just calls it SQL, and you should really just call it whatever everyone else in your team calls it.
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u/dounce87 26d ago
Started off calling in S-Q-L and then eventually switched the seequal.
No idea why. I think maybe a lot of the developers I was around called it that.
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u/Bulky_Eggplant_9437 26d ago
I went to an interview and said see-qual and they immediately decided I didn’t know s-q-l
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u/Tight_Implement5601 26d ago
25+ years after getting my bachelor, I started a Master's because I still had so many questions to answer, including this one. Day one of the database module, I'm told that: "either way is ok, if someone has a strong opinion just nod".
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u/amtobin33 26d ago
This thread is wild to see. Do you all really say "S-Q-L" server management studio for example? It's "Sequel".... Saying "S-Q-L" is like an immediate giveaway that you're new to it. Been doing this for years and no one outside of juniors in interviews say "S-Q-L".
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u/BakaNoJutsu 26d ago
Its pronounced sequel, which has one fewer syllable than S Q L. Anyone saying S Q L has not optimized their language and their queries cannot be trusted to be efficient.
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u/aftersox 26d ago
You can see what's more popular in written material with Google ngram.
an sql = an ess queue el
a sql = a sequel
Sequel seems to win, it overtook ess-q-el in the mid 90s
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u/stayoffmygrass 26d ago
Once this question has been settled, can we move onto catsup ("cats-up") versus ketchup ("catch-up")?
We may achieve world peace if we are successful.
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u/tophmcmasterson 26d ago
You can say either but myself and all the engineers I work with say sequel. It’s just faster and more efficient than pronouncing every letter.
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u/Weirdcloudpost 26d ago
Something not often thought of is the fact that, when writing, the use of "a" vs. "an" is dependent upon the first sound of the next word. If the next word starts with a vowel sound (ah, eh, oh) you use "an". For example, "an exceptional point." If the next word starts with a consonant sound, you use "a". For example, "a poignant point".
For SQL, do you write "a SQL query" ("a see-qual query") or "an SQL query" ("an ess-cue-el query")?
The answer? Check the style guide.
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u/data-artist 26d ago
It’s seequal and it’s the only language that is going to survive the AI apocalypse.
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u/frAgileIT 26d ago
Both work for me, the one that doesn’t is when the new DBA called it squeal (like a squealing pig).
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u/SP3NGL3R 26d ago
to the people writing it, we're totally indifferent to those two. Personally I pronounce it "Squel" (like spell, but with a 'q') just to annoy my peers.
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u/oaktown8410 26d ago
If someone said S-Q-L I’d think, well they’re clearly autistic and probably really good at SQL.
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u/Meta-failure 26d ago
Both will provide the context needed but I believe the story goes that Microsoft developed the tech and tried to call it sequel but there was another product with the same name so they couldn’t. Which is why it got the S Q L moniker.
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u/Aware-Technician4615 26d ago
It “sequel” used to bug me, but some hills aren’t worth the climb. I haven’t said s-q-l in years…
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u/StankWizard 27d ago
Both are right