One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that selects data records from versioned data. The system operates by receiving a query from a client to select data records from a data source that match a criteria specified by the query. Note that the data source includes at least one data record which has been modified at least one time, to create multiple versions of the data record. The system performs the query on the data source, which includes performing the query on multiple versions of the data record. Finally, the system returns results of the query to the client.