Self-Describing Structures

Kind: principle

Layer: Declarative Core

Record: architecture:self-describing-structures

Severity: contextual

Scope: data, runtime, metadata

Canonical: Ontology

A design rule that a data structure carries its own type tags and field names, so a reader can interpret it without outside knowledge.

Listed in Architecture principles, after Self-Describing API and before Metadata-Driven Design.

Requires

• Type Metadata
• Schema

Reinforces

• Introspection
• Validation

Enables

• Dynamic Processing

Conflicts with

• Opaque Binary/Untyped Structures

In tension with

• Size Overhead

Tensions

• Self-Describing Structures / Size Overhead

Violated by

• Opaque Binary/Untyped Structures

Refactored by

• Introduce Discriminated Union
• Schema Validation
• Manifest-Based Design

Severity

• contextual

Category

• Metadata / Self-Description / Declarative Systems

Reinforced by

• Derived Naming Registry

Linked from

• Document structure
• Correctness / Determinism / Verification
• Metadata / Self-Description / Declarative Systems
• Metaprogramming / Language-Oriented Architecture
• Taxonomy / Classification / Naming
• Core Vocabulary
• Metadata / Self-Description / Declarative Systems
• Schema / Canonical Data / Semantics
• Severity levels
• The resolutions