The Oracle Database is an object-relational database management system (ORDBMS) produced and marketed by Oracle Corporation

Oracle Corporation

Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...

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Larry Ellison

Larry Ellison

Lawrence Joseph "Larry" Ellison is the co-founder and chief executive officer of Oracle Corporation, one of the world's leading enterprise software companies. As of 2011, he is the third wealthiest American citizen, with an estimated worth of $33 billion.- Early life :Larry Ellison was born in the...

 and his friends and former co-workers Bob Miner

Bob Miner

Robert Nimrod "Bob" Miner was a co-founder of Oracle Corporation and architect of Oracle's relational database management system....

 and Ed Oates

Ed Oates

Edward A. "Ed" Oates co-founded Software Development Labs in August 1977 with Larry Ellison, and Bob Miner. Software Development Labs later became Oracle Corporation....

 started the consultancy Software Development Laboratories (SDL) in 1977. SDL developed the original version of the Oracle software. The name Oracle comes from the code-name of a CIA

Central Intelligence Agency

The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...

-funded project Ellison had worked on while previously employed by Ampex

Ampex

Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff. The name AMPEX is an acronym, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence...

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An Oracle database system—identified by an alphanumeric system identifier or SID—comprises at least one instance

Database

A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...

 of the application, along with data storage.