Associative arrays
Associative arrays are analogous to conventional arrays or lists which can be defined within a PL/SQL program only. Neither the array structure nor the data can be stored in the database. It can hold the elements of a similar type in a key-value structure without any upper bound to the array. Each cell of the array is distinguished by its subscript, index, or cell number. The index can be a number or a string.
Associative arrays were first introduced in Oracle 7 release as PL/SQL tables to signify its usage within the scope of a PL/SQL block. Oracle 8 release identified the PL/SQL table as Index by table due to its structure as an index-value pair. Oracle 10g release recognized the behavior of index by tables as arrays so as ...
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