Wikidata:Types of part-whole relations

This article describes some types of part-whole relationships.

Properties edit

These are some properties that differentiate the types of part-whole relations:

  • Configurational: "whether or not the parts bear a particular functional or structural relationship to one another or to the object they constitute"[1]
  • Functional: "Parts are/are not in a specific spatial/temporal position with respect to each other which supports their functional role with respect to the whole"[2]
  • Homeomerous: Whether the parts are the same type as their whole[2][1]
  • Invariance[1]/Seperable[2]: Whether the parts can be separated from the whole without changing the whole

Types edit

Component-integral object[1][2][3][4] edit

Example: A pedal is part of a bike.

Subtypes:

  • Physical: A pedal is part of a bike.
  • Abstract: Algebra is part of math

Wikidata properties: part of (P361)/has part(s) (P527)

Properties edit

Member-bunch[1], Member/Collection[2][4], Membership[3] edit

Examples: If Rock and Roll Hall of Famehas partThe Beatles and The Beatleshas partJohn Lennon, that doesn't mean Rock and Roll Hall of Famehas partJohn Lennon (it's not transitive).

Wikidata properties: has part(s) (P527)/member of (P463)

Properties edit

Member-partnership[1] edit

Example: "Bonnie" and "Clyde" are part of "Bonnie and Clyde"

Wikidata properties: has part(s) (P527)/member of (P463)

Properties edit

  • Configurational: No[1]
  • Homeomerous: No[1]
  • Separable: No[1]

Material-object[1], Stuff/Object[2][4], Constituents[3] edit

Examples: A windshield is made of glass. A cappuccino is partly milk. Water is partly oxygen.

Considerations: Determining whether something follows a component-integral object or material-object relationship can subjective.

Wikidata properties: made from material (P186)

Properties edit

Portion-object[1], Portion/Mass[2][4] edit

Example: A slice of pie is part of a pie.

Wikidata properties: part of (P361)/has part(s) (P527)

Properties edit

Place-area[1][2][4] edit

Examples: San Francisco is part of California. A sand bar is part of a beach.

Wikidata properties: location (P276)

Properties edit

Feature-activity[2][4] edit

Examples: Paying is part of shopping. Dating is part of adolescence.

Wikidata properties: part of (P361)/has part(s) (P527)

Properties edit

  • Functional: Yes[2]
  • Homeomerous: No[2]
  • Seperable: No[2]

Not part-whole relationships edit

These types of relationships may be confused to be part-whole relationships but they are not.

Containment[3], Topological inclusion[1] edit

Example: If something is inside a room, that doesn't mean it's part of it.

Wikidata properties: contains (P4330)/container (P9813), enclosure (P3158)

Connections and branches[3] edit

Example: Just because the Mississippi River connects to the Gulf of Mexico and shares a body of water with it does not mean it is a part of it.

Wikidata properties: connects with (P2789), tributary (P974)

Classification inclusion[1], subclassOf[3] edit

Example: A book is part of the set of all books, but that doesn't mean it is part of a "book". We use instance of (P31) instead.

Wikidata property: subclass of (P279), instance of (P31)

Discussions edit

References edit

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28 Six Different Kinds of Composition https://www.conradbock.org/compkind.html
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 A Taxonomy of Part-Whole Relations https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1207/s15516709cog1104_2
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Simple part-whole relations in OWL Ontologies https://www.w3.org/2001/sw/BestPractices/OEP/SimplePartWhole/
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Part-whole relations in object-centered systems: An overview https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169023X96000134