rdflib-shim

1.0.3 verified Mon Apr 27 auth: no python

rdflib-shim is a compatibility layer that smooths over breaking changes between rdflib 5 and 6, allowing code written for rdflib 5 to work with rdflib 6 without modification. Version 1.0.3 (latest) requires Python >=3.7. The library is maintained but low-churn (last release 2022).

pip install rdflib-shim

Common errors

error AttributeError: module 'rdflib' has no attribute 'RDF' ↓

cause In rdflib 6, the RDF namespace is no longer available under rdflib.RDF; it moved to rdflib.namespace.

fix

Add import rdflib_shim before import rdflib to restore the old behavior.

error AttributeError: module 'rdflib' has no attribute 'term' ↓

cause rdflib 6 changed internal module structure. Some direct references to rdflib.term fail.

fix

Use from rdflib.term import * or import the shim first.

error ImportError: cannot import name 'BNode' from 'rdflib' ↓

cause In rdflib 6, BNode is not directly exported from rdflib.__init__; it's in rdflib.term.

fix

Either use from rdflib.term import BNode or install/import rdflib-shim.

Warnings

gotcha The shim must be imported before any rdflib imports. If rdflib is imported first, the patching won't apply. ↓

fix Always put `import rdflib_shim` as the very first import in your module.

deprecated rdflib-shim may not be needed for new projects targeting rdflib 6+ directly. Its primary purpose is to ease migration from rdflib 5. ↓

fix For new code, consider writing directly against rdflib 6 APIs and skip the shim.

Imports

rdflib_shim
```
import rdflib_shim
```
The shim is imported before importing rdflib. No common wrong import reported.

Quickstart

Import the shim first, then use rdflib as usual with rdflib 6.

import rdflib_shim
from rdflib import Graph, URIRef, Literal

g = Graph()
g.parse('http://example.org/test.ttl', format='turtle')
for s, p, o in g:
    print(s, p, o)