Algebraic graphs with class (functional pearl)

Abstract

The paper presents a minimalistic and elegant approach to working with graphs in Haskell. It is built on a rigorous mathematical foundation --- an algebra of graphs --- that allows us to apply equational reasoning for proving the correctness of graph transformation algorithms. Algebraic graphs let us avoid partial functions typically caused by `malformed graphs' that contain an edge referring to a non-existent vertex. This helps to liberate APIs of existing graph libraries from partial functions.