Neo4j is the leader in the graph DBMSs world. It is based on the property graph model and allows you to build structured graph database solutions. The basic concepts of a graph database are nodes (that represent entities you want to define into your database) and arches (that represent relationships between nodes).
Neo4j uses a very intuitive and clever language to create and query data: Cypher. Cypher is a language that uses the ASCII-Art syntax. This is a graphic representation of what you want to explain. Following this convention, if you want to refer to a node in the graph, you use round brackets; if you want to refer to a relationship, you use square brackets. An example of a Cypher syntax is this: (a)-[:TEACHES]->(b) (it means that a teaches b).
In this lab, you will start using Cypher to create nodes and relationships to populate a Neo4j graph database.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this beginner level lab, you will be able to:
- Understand the basic principles of the Cypher language to create data
- Use the Cypher language to create nodes and arches
Intended Audience
- Data engineers who want to start using Neo4j as a graph database solution
- Developers who want to start learning Cypher to populate their graph database
Prerequisites
To get the most out of this lab, you should have basic knowledge of the concepts of graph databases and Neo4j. To achieve this, we suggest taking the following lab:
Updates
September 2nd, 2022 - Updated the instructions and screenshots to reflect the latest UI
July 7th, 2022 - Fixed environment error
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Stefano studies Computer Science and is passionate about technology. He loves working with Cloud services and learning all the best practices for them. Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services are the cloud providers he prefers. He is a Google Cloud Certified Associate Cloud Engineer. Node.js is the programming language he always uses to code. When he's not involved in studying or working, Stefano loves riding his motorbike and exploring new places.