Glossary

Governed Data Record

A Governed Data Record is one record of data, validated against a published Semantic Data Charter model, that carries its own definitions, provenance and governance, fixed once made. Its canonical serialization is XML (W3C XSD 1.1); JSON and RDF are projections of the same record.

The data portion of a Governed Data Record is what a data engineer would call a row. The record adds the definition of each value, the constraints it was checked against, its provenance and its governance, all carried in the record itself. "GDR" is used only where space forces it.

Model labels. A published model's label ends in "Governed Record" (for example "Invoice Governed Record"). That is the model of a Governed Data Record for an invoice; the record validates against it and names it by its permanent identifier.

Files. The generated package holds the Governed Data Record in two serializations: the XML template (dm-<id>.xml, the canonical form, with a placeholder at every value, valid once filled) and the JSON instance (dm-<id>-instance.json, with sample values). Where this documentation says "XML instance" or "JSON instance", it is talking about those files.

Semantic Data Charter

The open specification (Apache 2.0) for data that carries its own definitions, constraints and provenance, and the reference model (SDCRM) every Governed Data Record validates against. An organization's own collection of data models built on that reference model is its Semantic Data Charter.

Settlement Receipt

A signed record, issued by the Verifiable Settlement Layer, that a Governed Data Record was validated against a published model, that a governance decision was evaluated for a stated transition, and what the decision was. Verifiable by anyone who holds its identifier and the issuer's published key document.