XPath (XML Path Language) is a language used for selecting specific nodes or elements in an XML document. It provides a way to navigate through the structure of an XML document and retrieve the required data. XPath acts as a query language for XML files, allowing programmers to describe paths to navigate XML documents and identify specific elements, attributes, or sets of nodes.
XPath uses a compact expression syntax to locate nodes in an XML document based on their element tags, attributes, or relative positions. It can be considered as a subset of XQuery, which is a more comprehensive language for querying XML.
XPath expressions are typically used in various programming languages and frameworks to access and manipulate XML data. It enables developers to extract specific data elements from XML documents, traverse through the document structure, apply filters, and perform more complex tasks like searching, sorting, and transforming XML data.
XPath expressions consist of a combination of element names, attribute names, and operators, such as "/" to navigate through the document structure and search for specific nodes or elements. It also supports various functions and axes to perform more advanced querying operations.
Overall, XPath provides a standardized and flexible way to navigate and query XML documents, making it a fundamental tool for XML processing and data manipulation.
