Hibernate is a leading object-relational mapping (ORM) framework in the Java ecosystem, originally developed and maintained by Red Hat. It automates much of the conversion between Java objects and relational databases, handling SQL generation, advanced caching, and transaction management so you don’t have to write low-level SQL.

With support for XML and annotation-based configuration and a flexible query language (HQL), Hibernate gives you both control and convenience when working with persistence. It’s modular, with add-ons for full-text search, validation, auditing, and reactive data access that you can opt into as needed.

Hibernate scales from small standalone applications to large Java EE systems and integrates smoothly with frameworks like Spring Data. The project continues to be actively developed - for example, version 7.0.0.Final was released in May 2025 - showing it remains relevant for modern projects.