Ingestion refers to the process of obtaining and importing data for immediate use or storage in a database. This process involves collecting data from various sources, such as databases, files, streaming services, and APIs, and loading it into a target system where it can be processed and analyzed. Data ingestion can be performed in real-time or in batches, depending on the requirements of the application. Effective data ingestion is crucial for maintaining data quality and ensuring that downstream data processing and analytics workflows are reliable and efficient.