diff --git a/db-service/lib/SQLService.js b/db-service/lib/SQLService.js
index 19e6bf6c0..bd488f17f 100644
--- a/db-service/lib/SQLService.js
+++ b/db-service/lib/SQLService.js
@@ -257,9 +257,7 @@ class SQLService extends DatabaseService {
       const table = getDBTable(req.target)
       const { compositions } = table
 
-       // Check if we are in the hierarchy case
-      let isHierarchy = req.target.elements?.LimitedDescendantCount
-      const recursiveBacklinks = []
+      const recursiveComps = []
 
       if (compositions) {
         // Transform CQL`DELETE from Foo[p1] WHERE p2` into CQL`DELETE from Foo[p1 and p2]`
@@ -271,28 +269,14 @@ class SQLService extends DatabaseService {
           from = { ref: [...from.ref.slice(0, -1), { id: last, where }] }
         }
         // Process child compositions depth-first
-        let { depth = 0, visited = [] } = req
+        let { visited = [] } = req
         visited.push(req.target.name)
         await Promise.all(
           Object.values(compositions).map(c => {
             if (c._target['@cds.persistence.skip'] === true) return
             if (c._target === req.target) {
-              // deep delete for hierarchies
-              if (isHierarchy) {
-                function _getBacklinkName(on) {
-                  const i = on.findIndex(e => e.ref && e.ref[0] === '$self')
-                  if (i === -1) return
-                  let ref
-                  if (on[i + 1] && on[i + 1] === '=') ref = on[i + 2].ref
-                  if (on[i - 1] && on[i - 1] === '=') ref = on[i - 2].ref
-                  return ref && ref[ref.length - 1]
-                }
-                const backlinkName = _getBacklinkName(c.on)
-                recursiveBacklinks.push(backlinkName)
-                return
-              }
-              // the Genre.children case
-              if (++depth > (c['@depth'] || 3)) return
+              recursiveComps.push(c.name)
+              return
             } else if (visited.includes(c._target.name))
               throw new Error(
                 `Transitive circular composition detected: \n\n` +
@@ -302,10 +286,10 @@ class SQLService extends DatabaseService {
             // Prepare and run deep query, à la CQL`DELETE from Foo[pred]:comp1.comp2...`
             const query = DELETE.from({ ref: [...from.ref, c.name] })
             query._target = c._target
-            return this.onDELETE({ query, depth, visited: [...visited], target: c._target })
+            return this.onDELETE({ query, visited: [...visited], target: c._target })
           }),
         )
-        if (recursiveBacklinks.length) {
+        if (recursiveComps.length) {
           let key
           // For hierarchies, only a single key is supported
           for (const _key in req.target.keys) {
@@ -314,10 +298,11 @@ class SQLService extends DatabaseService {
             break
           }
           const _where = []
-          for (const backlink of recursiveBacklinks) {
+          for (const comp of recursiveComps) {
             const _recursiveQuery = SELECT.from(table).columns(key)
             _recursiveQuery.SELECT.recurse = {
-              ref: [backlink],
+              ref: [comp],
+              backward: false,
               where: from.ref[0].where,
             }
             _where.push({ ref: [key] }, 'in', _recursiveQuery, 'or')
diff --git a/db-service/lib/cql-functions.js b/db-service/lib/cql-functions.js
index f7433937d..cd86f15cc 100644
--- a/db-service/lib/cql-functions.js
+++ b/db-service/lib/cql-functions.js
@@ -204,6 +204,8 @@ const HANAFunctions = {
     // Ensure that the orderBy column are exposed by the source for hierarchy sorting
     const orderBy = args.xpr.find((_, i, arr) => /ORDER/i.test(arr[i - 2]) && /BY/i.test(arr[i - 1]))
 
+    const startWhere = args.xpr.find((_, i, arr) => /START/i.test(arr[i - 2]) && /WHERE/i.test(arr[i - 1]))
+
     const passThroughColumns = src.SELECT.columns.map(c => ({ ref: ['Source', this.column_name(c)] }))
     src.as = 'H' + (uniqueCounter++)
     src = this.expr(this.with(src))
@@ -213,7 +215,7 @@ SELECT
   1 as HIERARCHY_LEVEL,
   NODE_ID as HIERARCHY_ROOT_ID
  FROM ${src} AS Source
-WHERE parent_ID IS NULL
+WHERE ${startWhere ? this.expr(startWhere) : 'parent_ID IS NULL'}
 UNION ALL
 SELECT
   Parent.HIERARCHY_LEVEL + 1,
diff --git a/db-service/lib/cqn2sql.js b/db-service/lib/cqn2sql.js
index 5c21c742d..e7633a252 100644
--- a/db-service/lib/cqn2sql.js
+++ b/db-service/lib/cqn2sql.js
@@ -386,11 +386,11 @@ class CQN2SQLRenderer {
     const alias = stableFrom.as
     const source = () => {
       return ({
-      func: 'HIERARCHY',
-      args: [{ xpr: ['SOURCE', { SELECT: { columns: columnsIn, from: stableFrom } }, ...(orderBy ? ['SIBLING', 'ORDER', 'BY', `${this.orderBy(orderBy)}`] : [])] }],
-      as: alias
-    })
-  }
+        func: 'HIERARCHY',
+        args: [{ xpr: ['SOURCE', { SELECT: { columns: columnsIn, from: stableFrom } }, ...(orderBy ? ['SIBLING', 'ORDER', 'BY', `${this.orderBy(orderBy)}`] : [])] }],
+        as: alias
+      })
+    }
 
     const expandedByNr = { list: [] } // DistanceTo(...,null)
     const expandedByOne = { list: [] } // DistanceTo(...,1)
diff --git a/test/compliance/DELETE.test.js b/test/compliance/DELETE.test.js
index 85b07daa8..913a2a700 100644
--- a/test/compliance/DELETE.test.js
+++ b/test/compliance/DELETE.test.js
@@ -30,11 +30,47 @@ const recusiveData = [
         ],
       },
     ],
+    recursiveToOne: {
+      ID: 103,
+      fooRoot: 'Recursive to one Horror',
+      children: [
+        {
+          ID: 1031,
+          fooChild: 'bar',
+          children: [
+            {
+              ID: 10311,
+              fooGrandChild: 'bar',
+            },
+          ],
+          recursiveToOneChild: {
+            ID: 1032,
+            fooChild: 'Recursive to one Horror 2',
+          },
+        },
+      ],
+      recursiveToOne: {
+        ID: 1033,
+        fooRoot: 'Recursive to one Horror 3',
+        recursiveToOne: {
+          ID: 10331,
+          fooRoot: 'Recursive to one Horror 3',
+          recursiveToOne: {
+            ID: 103311,
+            fooRoot: 'Recursive to one Horror 3',
+            recursiveToOne: {
+              ID: 1033111,
+              fooRoot: 'Recursive to one Horror 3',
+            },
+          },
+        },
+      },
+    },
   },
   {
     ID: 11,
     fooRoot: 'Low Horror',
-    parent_ID: 10,
+    recParent_ID: 10,
     children: [
       {
         ID: 111,
@@ -61,7 +97,7 @@ const recusiveData = [
   {
     ID: 12,
     fooRoot: 'Medium Horror',
-    parent_ID: 11,
+    recParent_ID: 11,
     children: [
       {
         ID: 121,
@@ -88,7 +124,7 @@ const recusiveData = [
   {
     ID: 13,
     fooRoot: 'Hard Horror',
-    parent_ID: 11,
+    recParent_ID: 11,
     children: [
       {
         ID: 131,
@@ -115,7 +151,7 @@ const recusiveData = [
   {
     ID: 14,
     fooRoot: 'Very Hard Horror',
-    parent_ID: 12,
+    recParent_ID: 12,
     children: [
       {
         ID: 141,
@@ -142,7 +178,7 @@ const recusiveData = [
   {
     ID: 15,
     fooRoot: 'Very Very Hard Horror',
-    parent_ID: 14,
+    recParent_ID: 14,
     children: [
       {
         ID: 151,
diff --git a/test/compliance/resources/db/complex/associations.cds b/test/compliance/resources/db/complex/associations.cds
index 283bebf80..61a44c2ad 100644
--- a/test/compliance/resources/db/complex/associations.cds
+++ b/test/compliance/resources/db/complex/associations.cds
@@ -3,9 +3,10 @@ namespace complex.associations;
 entity Root {
   key ID        : Integer;
       fooRoot   : String;
-      parent    : Association to Root;
+      recursiveToOne : Composition of one Root;
+      recParent    : Association to Root;
       recursive : Composition of many Root
-                    on recursive.parent = $self;
+                    on recursive.recParent = $self;
       children  : Composition of many Child
                     on children.parent = $self;
 }