Relationship Types

MIF provides an extensible relationship type system. Implementations SHOULD support the core types for interoperability, but MAY define custom relationship types for domain-specific needs.

Relationship Type Architecture

Relationship types are not hard-coded. They are defined in bundle configuration and can be extended per-project:

relationship_types:
  # Core types (RECOMMENDED for interoperability)
  - name: relates-to
    description: General semantic relationship
    symmetric: true
  - name: derived-from
    description: Memory created based on source
    inverse: derives
  - name: supersedes
    description: Replaces an older memory
    inverse: superseded-by
  - name: conflicts-with
    description: Contradicts another memory
    symmetric: true
  - name: part-of
    description: Component of a larger whole
    inverse: contains
  - name: implements
    description: Realizes a concept or pattern
    inverse: implemented-by
  - name: uses
    description: Utilizes a technology or tool
    inverse: used-by
  - name: created-by
    description: Authored by an entity
    inverse: creates
  - name: mentioned-in
    description: Referenced within a memory
    inverse: mentions

  # Custom types (domain-specific)
  - name: reinforces
    namespace: subcog
    description: Strengthens confidence in another memory
    inverse: reinforced-by
  - name: contradicts
    namespace: subcog
    description: Provides evidence against another memory
    inverse: contradicted-by
  - name: breeds-with
    namespace: farm
    description: Animal breeding relationship
    symmetric: false
    properties:
      - name: breeding_date
        type: date
      - name: success
        type: boolean

Core Relationship Types (Recommended)

For maximum interoperability, implementations SHOULD recognize these nine core types:

Type	Description	Inverse	Symmetric
`relates-to`	General relationship	`relates-to`	Yes
`derived-from`	Created based on source	`derives`	No
`supersedes`	Replaces older memory	`superseded-by`	No
`conflicts-with`	Contradicts another memory	`conflicts-with`	Yes
`part-of`	Component of larger whole	`contains`	No
`implements`	Realizes a concept/pattern	`implemented-by`	No
`uses`	Utilizes a technology/tool	`used-by`	No
`created-by`	Authored by entity	`creates`	No
`mentioned-in`	Referenced in memory	`mentions`	No

Custom Relationship Types

Providers MAY define additional relationship types using namespaced URIs:

# Custom relationship type definition
relationship_types:
  - name: contradicts
    namespace: farm           # Results in type token: farm:contradicts
    description: Provides conflicting evidence
    inverse: contradicted-by
    properties:
      - name: contradiction_type
        type: string
        enum: [direct, indirect, partial]
      - name: severity
        type: decimal
        range: [0.0, 1.0]

JSON-LD representation of custom relationship types:

{
  "@context": [
    "https://mif-spec.dev/schema/context.jsonld",
    {"farm": "https://example.org/farm/"}
  ],
  "relationships": [
    {
      "type": "farm:breeds-with",
      "target": "urn:mif:entity:animal:ram-001",
      "strength": 1.0,
      "metadata": {
        "farm:breeding_date": "2025-10-15",
        "farm:success": true
      }
    }
  ]
}

Relationship Schema

Markdown syntax:

Relationships are authoritative in frontmatter relationships[] and mirrored as OKF-legible markdown links in a dedicated body section, using the form - <type> [Text](/path/target.md):

## Relationships

- relates-to [Other Concept](/semantic/other-concept.md)
- derived-from [Source Concept](/episodic/source-concept.md)
- supersedes [Old Concept](/semantic/old-concept.md)
- conflicts-with [Contradicting Concept](/semantic/contradicting-concept.md)
- part-of [Parent Concept](/semantic/parent-concept.md)

The relationship type name is converted to kebab-case in Markdown. The link target is a bundle-relative path to the target concept’s .md file, so a generic OKF consumer sees every edge. The matching frontmatter (one entry per body link):

relationships:
  - type: relates-to
    target: /semantic/other-concept.md
  - type: derived-from
    target: /episodic/source-concept.md
  - type: supersedes
    target: /semantic/old-concept.md
  - type: conflicts-with
    target: /semantic/contradicting-concept.md
  - type: part-of
    target: /semantic/parent-concept.md

JSON-LD schema:

"relationships": [
  {
    "type": "derived-from",
    "target": "urn:mif:memory:source-memory",
    "strength": 0.9,
    "metadata": {
      "reason": "Extracted key insight",
      "extractedAt": "2026-01-15T10:30:00Z"
    }
  }
]

Relationship Properties

Property	Type	Required	Description
`type`	String	Yes	Relationship type in kebab-case (e.g. `derived-from`)
`target`	String	Yes	Target memory or entity path/URN
`strength`	Decimal	No	Relationship strength (0.0-1.0)
`metadata`	Object	No	Additional relationship metadata