> **Experimental**
>
> `@aws-cdk/aws-redshift-alpha` is an [**experimental**](/stability) (alpha) package: its API may change in any release, without a major version bump.
# Column

A column in a Redshift table.

- Stability: [Experimental](/cdk/api/stability.html)
- Source: [`lib/table.ts`](https://github.com/aws/aws-cdk/blob/v2.274.0-alpha.0/packages/@aws-cdk/aws-redshift-alpha/lib/table.ts#L60)

## Example

```ts
// The code below shows an example of how to instantiate this type.
// The values are placeholders you should change.
import * as redshift_alpha from '@aws-cdk/aws-redshift-alpha';
const column: redshift_alpha.Column = {
  dataType: 'dataType',
  name: 'name',

  // the properties below are optional
  comment: 'comment',
  distKey: false,
  encoding: redshift_alpha.ColumnEncoding.AUTO,
  id: 'id',
  sortKey: false,
};
```

## Properties

- `comment`: string — A comment to attach to the column.

  **Default:** no comment

- `dataType`: string (required) — The data type of the column.

- `distKey`: boolean — Boolean value that indicates whether the column is to be configured as DISTKEY.

  **Default:** column is not DISTKEY

- `encoding`: [ColumnEncoding](/cdk/api/v2/docs/@aws-cdk_aws-redshift-alpha.ColumnEncoding.html) — The encoding to use for the column.

  **Default:** Amazon Redshift determines the encoding based on the data type.

- `id`: string — The unique identifier of the column.

  **Default:** the column name is used as the identifier

  This is not the name of the column, and renaming this identifier will cause a new column to be created and the old column to be dropped.

  **NOTE** - This field will be set, however, only by setting the `@aws-cdk/aws-redshift:columnId` feature flag will this field be used.

- `name`: string (required) — The name of the column.

  This will appear on Amazon Redshift.

- `sortKey`: boolean — Boolean value that indicates whether the column is to be configured as SORTKEY.

  **Default:** column is not a SORTKEY