ICDT is a biennial international conference on theoretical aspects of databases and a forum for communicating research advances on the principles of database systems. The first ICDT conference was held in Rome 1986. Following conferences were held in Bruges (1988), Paris (1990), Berlin (1992), Prague (1995) and Delphi (1997). At about the same time that ICDT was started, a parallel development took place in the former East block, by the establishment of the Symposium on Mathematical Fundamentals of Database Systems (MFDBS), also a biennial event. The first MFDBS took place in Dresden 1987; subsequent symposia were held in Visegrad (1989) and Rostock (1991). Since 1992, ICDT has been merged with MFDBS, to create a single biennial conference serving the European and international communities of database theoreticians.
ICDT is a European event. However, from the start, there was a substantial involvement of the international community, reflected in the program committees, the papers presented and the participants. Currently, ICDT is a truly international conference, attracting papers and participants from all over the world, and attended by the leading researchers of database theory.
As a European event, ICDT has an established tradition concerning its location: It is held in current or historic capitals of European countries. (The ICDT97 was an exception: Delphi, rather than Athens). Continuing this tradition, Jerusalem, Israel was chosen as the site for ICDT99. Take this opportunity to combine a significant professional event with a visit to one of the oldest cities in the world,