Rename result fields (aliases)
Sometimes, Little Bobby Tables is the right name. Other times, you might want to change the default names that the database returns in results. Aliases allow you to rename fields and entire query results with identifiers of your choice.
Display database setup
This page assumes your database contains Book and Person collections and some documents in them:
Database schema
type Person {
name: String!
authoredBooks: [Book]
}
type Book {
title: String!
genre: String
plot: String
rating: Float
author: Person
}
Person documents setup
mutation {
a1:add_Person(input: {
name: "George Orwell"
}) { _docID }
a2:add_Person(input: {
name: "William Golding"
}) { _docID }
a3:add_Person(input: {
name: "David Foster Wallace"
}) { _docID }
a4:add_Person(input: {
name: "Victor Hugo"
}) { _docID }
}
Book documents setup
mutation {
b11:add_Book(input: {
title: "1984",
genre: "Fiction",
plot: "A masterpiece of rebellion and imprisonment where war is peace, freedom is slavery, and Big Brother is watching.",
rating: 4.20,
_authorID: "bae-3517d1eb-351b-5231-8387-870893ffb395"
}) {
_docID
title
}
b12:add_Book(input: {
title: "Down and Out in Paris and London",
genre: "Biography",
plot: "The adventures of a penniless British writer among the down-and-outs of two great cities.",
rating: 4.09,
_authorID: "bae-3517d1eb-351b-5231-8387-870893ffb395"
}) {
_docID
title
}
b21:add_Book(input: {
title: "Lord of the Flies",
genre: "Fiction",
plot: "At the dawn of the next world war, a plane crashes on an uncharted island, stranding a group of schoolboys.",
rating: 3.70,
_authorID: "bae-78e9c7be-10b9-5673-bad2-da3341367d4b"
}) {
_docID
title
}
b31:add_Book(input: {
title: "Infinite Jest",
genre: "Fiction",
plot: "A gargantuan, mind-altering tragi-comedy about the Pursuit of Happiness in America.",
rating: 4.25
_authorID: "bae-b59928dc-fd05-5fb7-aea2-9b24af5ebcea"
}) {
_docID
title
}
b32:add_Book(input: {
title: "Consider the Lobster and Other Essays",
genre: "Nonfiction",
plot: "Do lobsters feel pain? Did Franz Kafka have a funny bone? What is John Updike's deal, anyway? And what happens when adult video starlets meet their fans in person? Essays that are also enthralling narrative adventures.",
rating: 4.18,
_authorID: "bae-b59928dc-fd05-5fb7-aea2-9b24af5ebcea"
}) {
_docID
title
}
b41:add_Book(input: {
title: "Les Misérables",
genre: "Fiction",
plot: "Victor Hugo's tale of injustice, heroism and love follows the fortunes of Jean Valjean, an escaped convict determined to put his criminal past behind him.",
rating: 4.21,
_authorID: "bae-c169e917-df52-5603-9224-39c1757f1b04"
}) {
_docID
title
}
}
Rename queries
To rename the return key for a query, prefix the custom name to the query and separate the two with a colon :.
Return the three top-rated books under the key "topThreeBooks"
{
topThreeBooks: Book(order: { rating: DESC }, limit: 3) {
title
plot
rating
}
}
Result
{
"data": {
"topThreeBooks": [
{
"plot": "A gargantuan, mind-altering tragi-comedy about the Pursuit of Happiness in America.",
"rating": 4.25,
"title": "Infinite Jest"
},
{
"plot": "Victor Hugo's tale of injustice, heroism and love follows the fortunes of Jean Valjean, an escaped convict determined to put his criminal past behind him.",
"rating": 4.21,
"title": "Les Misérables"
},
{
"plot": "A masterpiece of rebellion and imprisonment where war is peace, freedom is slavery, and Big Brother is watching.",
"rating": 4.2,
"title": "1984"
}
]
}
}
You must alias queries when one request contains multiple queries to the same type.
Two queries on type Book return results under "topThreeBooks" and "worstThreeBooks"
{
topThreeBooks: Book(order: { rating: DESC }, limit: 3) {
title
genre
plot
}
worstThreeBooks: Book(order: { rating: ASC }, limit: 3) {
title
genre
plot
}
}
Result
{
"data": {
"topThreeBooks": [
{
"genre": "Fiction",
"plot": "A gargantuan, mind-altering tragi-comedy about the Pursuit of Happiness in America.",
"title": "Infinite Jest"
},
{
"genre": "Fiction",
"plot": "Victor Hugo's tale of injustice, heroism and love follows the fortunes of Jean Valjean, an escaped convict determined to put his criminal past behind him.",
"title": "Les Misérables"
},
{
"genre": "Fiction",
"plot": "A masterpiece of rebellion and imprisonment where war is peace, freedom is slavery, and Big Brother is watching.",
"title": "1984"
}
],
"worstThreeBooks": [
{
"genre": "Fiction",
"plot": "At the dawn of the next world war, a plane crashes on an uncharted island, stranding a group of schoolboys.",
"title": "Lord of the Flies"
},
{
"genre": "Biography",
"plot": "The adventures of a penniless British writer among the down-and-outs of two great cities.",
"title": "Down and Out in Paris and London"
},
{
"genre": "Nonfiction",
"plot": "Do lobsters feel pain? Did Franz Kafka have a funny bone? What is John Updike's deal, anyway? And what happens when adult video starlets meet their fans in person? Essays that are also enthralling narrative adventures.",
"title": "Consider the Lobster and Other Essays"
}
]
}
}
Rename fields
To rename the return key for a field, prefix the custom name to the field in the selection set and separate the two with a colon :.
Rename the field "plot" to "description"
{
Book(limit: 1) {
title
genre
description: plot
}
}
Result
{
"data": {
"Book": [
{
"description": "At the dawn of the next world war, a plane crashes on an uncharted island, stranding a group of schoolboys.",
"genre": "Fiction",
"title": "Lord of the Flies"
}
]
}
}
tip
Filters over renamed fields require the _alias key. See Filter -> Field aliases for more information.