Snowflake RENAME COLUMN: How to Rename a Column in Snowflake
The RENAME COLUMN statement is used to change the name of an existing column in a table to a new name that isn’t already used by another column in the same table.
Syntax
_10ALTER TABLE table_name RENAME COLUMN old_column_name TO new_column_name;
Key Points
- Clustering Key Restriction: Columns that are part of a clustering key cannot be renamed.
- References Update: If other objects or queries reference the column being renamed, those references need to be manually updated to reflect the new column name.
Example
Rename a Column
Imagine you have a table named pet_registry that stores information about various pets. You initially named a column as owner_name, but now you want to make it more specific and change it to pet_owner_name to avoid any confusion with other tables that might also have an owner_name column.
Snowflake SQL Query
_10ALTER TABLE pet_registry RENAME COLUMN owner_name TO pet_owner_name;
Explanation
This command would update your pet_registry table, ensuring that it’s clearer who the owner refers to—making it just a bit easier for everyone (and perhaps the pets too, if they could read SQL)!
