Arrays in Java

Arrays are fundamental structures in Java that allow us to store multiple values of the same type in a single variable. They are useful for managing collections of data efficiently. Arrays in Java work differently than they do in C/C++. This article covers the basics and in-depth explanations with examples of array declaration , creation , and manipulation in Java.

Table of Content

• Basics of Arrays in Java
• In-depth Concepts of Java Array
• Arrays in Java
• Creating, Initializing, and Accessing an Arrays in Java
• Instantiating an Array in Java
• Array Literal in Java
• Types of Arrays in Java
  • 1. Single-Dimensional Arrays
  • 2. Multi-Dimensional Arrays

  Basics of Arrays in Java

  Array Declaration

  To declare an array in Java, use the following syntax:

  type[] arrayName;

  • type : The data type of the array elements (e.g., int , String ).
  • arrayName : The name of the array.

  Array Declaration Example:

  Here’s an example of declaring an integer array:

  int[] numbers; // Declaring an integer array

  • This statement declares an array named numbers that will hold integers. Note: The array is not yet initialized .

  Create an Array

  To create an array, you need to allocate memory for it using the new keyword :

  numbers = new int[5]; // Creating an array of 5 integers

  • This statement initializes the numbers array to hold 5 integers. The default value for each element is 0 .

  Access an Element of an Array

  We can access array elements using their index, which starts from 0 :

  numbers[0] = 10; // Setting the first element of the array
  int firstElement = numbers[0]; // Accessing the first element

  • The first line sets the value of the first element to 10 . The second line retrieves the value of the first element.

  Change an Array Element

  To change an element, assign a new value to a specific index:

  numbers[0] = 20; // Changing the first element to 20

  • This statement updates the value of the first element from 10 to 20 .

  Array Length

  We can get the length of an array using the length property:

  int length = numbers.length; // Getting the length of the array

  This retrieves the number of elements in the numbers array, which is 5 in this case.

  The above are the basic details of Arrays in Java. Now, if you want to go through the in-depth concepts of Java Arrays , then scroll down below and go through the diagrams, examples, and explanations.

  In-depth Concepts of Java Array

  Following are some important points about Java arrays.

  Arrays in Java

  • In Java, all arrays are dynamically allocated .
  • Arrays may be stored in contiguous memory [consecutive memory locations].
  • Since arrays are objects in Java, we can find their length using the object property length . This is different from C/C++, where we find length using size of.
  • A Java array variable can also be declared like other variables with [] after the data type.
  • The variables in the array are ordered, and each has an index beginning with 0.
  • Java array can also be used as a static field, a local variable, or a method parameter.

  An array can contain primitives (int, char, etc.) and object (or non-primitive) references of a class, depending on the definition of the array. In the case of primitive data types, the actual values might be stored in contiguous memory locations (JVM does not guarantee this behavior). In the case of class objects, the actual objects are stored in a heap segment . To learn more about Java Array, go through Java programming course here.

  

  Note: This storage of arrays helps us randomly access the elements of an array [Support Random Access].

  Creating, Initializing, and Accessing an Arrays in Java

  The general form of array declaration is

  -- type var-name[];
  -- type[] var-name;

  • An array declaration has two components : the type and the name.
  • type declares the element type of the array.
  • The element type determines the data type of each element that comprises the array.
  • Like an array of integers, we can also create an array of other primitive data types like char, float, double, etc., or user-defined data types (objects of a class).
  • Thus, the element type for the array determines what type of data the array will hold.

  Example:

  // both are valid declarations
  int intArray[]; 
  int[] intArray; 
  // similar to int we can declare 
  // byte , short, boolean, long, float
  // double, char
  // an array of references to objects of
  // the class MyClass (a class created by user)
  MyClass myClassArray[]; 
  // array of Object
  Object[] ao, 
  // array of Collection 
  // of unknown type
  Collection[] ca; 

  • Although the first declaration establishes that int Array is an array variable, no actual array exists .
  • It merely tells the compiler that this variable (int Array) will hold an array of the integer type.
  • To link int Array with an actual, physical array of integers, you must allocate one using new and assign it to int Array.

  Instantiating an Array in Java

  When an array is declared, only a reference of an array is created. To create or give memory to the array, you create an array like this: The general form of new as it applies to one-dimensional arrays appears as follows:

  var-name = new type [size];

  Here, type specifies the type of data being allocated, size determines the number of elements in the array, and var-name is the name of the array variable that is linked to the array. To use new to allocate an array, you must specify the type and number of elements to allocate.

  Example:

  //declaring array
  int intArray[];
  // allocating memory to array
  intArray = new int[20]; 
  // combining both statements in one
  int[] intArray = new int[20]; 

  Note: The elements in the array allocated by new will automatically be initialized to zero (for numeric types), false (for boolean), or null (for reference types). Do refer to default array values in Java .

  Obtaining an array is a two-step process. First, you must declare a variable of the desired array type. Second, you must allocate the memory to hold the array, using new, and assign it to the array variable. Thus, in Java , all arrays are dynamically allocated.

  Array Literal in Java

  In a situation where the size of the array and variables of the array are already known, array literals can be used.

  // Declaring array literal 
  int[] intArray = new int[]< 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 >; 

  • The length of this array determines the length of the created array.
  • There is no need to write the new int[] part in the latest versions of Java.

  Accessing Java Array Elements using for Loop

  Each element in the array is accessed via its index. The index begins with 0 and ends at (total array size)-1. All the elements of array can be accessed using Java for Loop.

   // accessing the elements of the specified array
  for (int i = 0; i < arr.length; i++)
   System.out.println("Element at index " + i + " : "+ arr[i]);

  Implementation:

  
  Output

  Element at index 0 : 10 Element at index 1 : 20 Element at index 2 : 30 Element at index 3 : 40 Element at index 4 : 50

  Complexity of the above method:

  Time Complexity: O(n)
  Auxiliary Space: O(1)

  Types of Arrays in Java

  Java supports different types of arrays:

  1. Single-Dimensional Arrays

  These are the most common type of arrays, where elements are stored in a linear order.

  int[] singleDimArray = ; // A single-dimensional array

  

  2. Multi-Dimensional Arrays

  Arrays with more than one dimension, such as two-dimensional arrays (matrices).

  int[][] multiDimArray = 
   ,
   ,
   
  >; // A 2D array (matrix)

  You can also access java arrays using for each loops .

  Arrays of Objects in Java

  An array of objects is created like an array of primitive-type data items in the following way.

  Student[] arr = new Student[5]; //Student is a user-defined class

  Syntax:

  -- data type[] arrName;
  -- datatype arrName[];
  -- datatype [] arrName;

  Example of Arrays of Objects

  Example 1:

  Below is the implementation of the above mentioned topic:

  
  Output

  Array Size:4

  • The Student Array contains five memory spaces each of the size of Student class in which the address of five Student objects can be stored.
  • The Student objects have to be instantiated using the constructor of the Student class, and their references should be assigned to the array elements in the following way.

  Example 2:

  Below is the implementation of the above mentioned topic:

  
  Output

  Element at 0 : 1 aman Element at 1 : 2 vaibhav Element at 2 : 3 shikar Element at 3 : 4 dharmesh Element at 4 : 5 mohit

  Complexity of the above method:

  Time Complexity: O(n)
  Auxiliary Space : O(1)

  Example 3:

  An array of objects is also created like :

  
  Output

  Dharma sanvi Rupa Ajay

  What happens if we try to access elements outside the array size?

  JVM throws ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException to indicate that the array has been accessed with an illegal index. The index is either negative or greater than or equal to the size of an array.

  Below code shows what happens if we try to access elements outside the array size:

  Output

  Trying to access element outside the size of array
  Exception in thread "main" java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException: Index 5 out of bounds for length 4
  at GFG.main(GFG.java:13)

  Example (Iterating the array):

  
  Output

  10 20

  Complexity of the above method:

  Time Complexity: O(n), here n is size of array.
  Auxiliary Space: O(1) , since no extra space required.

  Multidimensional Arrays in Java

  Multidimensional arrays are arrays of arrays with each element of the array holding the reference of other arrays. These are also known as Jagged Arrays . A multidimensional array is created by appending one set of square brackets ([]) per dimension.

  Syntax:

  There are 2 methods to declare Java Multidimensional Arrays as mentioned below:

  datatype [][] arrayrefvariable;
  datatype arrayrefvariable[][];

  

  Declaration:

  int[][] intArray = new int[10][20]; //a 2D array or matrix
  int[][][] intArray = new int[10][20][10]; //a 3D array

  Java Multidimensional Arrays Examples

  Example 1:

  
  Output

  Number of Rows:3 Number of Columns:3

  Example 2:

  
  Output

  2 7 9 3 6 1 7 4 2

  Passing Arrays to Methods

  Like variables, we can also pass arrays to methods. For example, the below program passes the array to method sum to calculate the sum of the array’s values.

  
  Output

  sum of array values : 15

  Complexity of the above method:

  Time Complexity: O(n)
  Auxiliary Space : O(1)

  Returning Arrays from Methods

  As usual, a method can also return an array. For example, the below program returns an array from method m1 .

  
  Output

  1 2 3

  Complexity of the above method:

  Time Complexity: O(n)
  Auxiliary Space : O(1)

  Class Objects for Arrays

  Every array has an associated Class object, shared with all other arrays with the same component type.

  
  Output

  class [I class java.lang.Object class [B class [S class [Ljava.lang.String;

  Explanation of the above method:

  • The string “[I” is the run-time type signature for the class object “array with component type int .”
  • The only direct superclass of an array type is java.lang.Object .
  • The string “[B” is the run-time type signature for the class object “array with component type byte .”
  • The string “[S” is the run-time type signature for the class object “array with component type short .”
  • The string “[L” is the run-time type signature for the class object “array with component type of a Class.” The Class name is then followed.

  Java Array Members

  Now, as you know that arrays are objects of a class, and a direct superclass of arrays is a class Object. The members of an array type are all of the following:

  • The public final field length contains the number of components of the array. Length may be positive or zero.
  • All the members are inherited from class Object; the only method of Object that is not inherited is its clone method.
  • The public method clone() overrides the clone method in class Object and throws no checked exceptions .

  Arrays Types and Their Allowed Element Types

  Array Types	Allowed Element Types
  Primitive Type Arrays	Any type which can be implicitly promoted to declared type.
  Object Type Arrays	Either declared type objects or it’s child class objects.
  Abstract Class Type Arrays	Its child-class objects are allowed.
  Interface Type Arrays	Its implementation class objects are allowed.

  Cloning of Single-Dimensional Array in Java

  When you clone a single-dimensional array, such as Object[] , a shallow copy is performed. This means that the new array contains references to the original array’s elements rather than copies of the objects themselves. A deep copy occurs only with arrays containing primitive data types, where the actual values are copied.

  Below is the implementation of the above method:

  
  Output

  false 1 2 3

  Explanation of the above Program:

  • In this example, intArray and cloneArray are not the same object ( intArray == cloneArray is false ), but they share the same contents because primitive values are deeply copied.
  • For arrays containing objects, the references are copied, so the objects themselves are not duplicated.

  

  Cloning Multidimensional Array in Java

  A clone of a multi-dimensional array (like Object[][]) is a “shallow copy,” however, which is to say that it creates only a single new array with each element array a reference to an original element array, but subarrays are shared.

  
  Output

  false true true

  

  Advantages of Java Arrays

  • Efficient Access : Accessing an element by its index is fast and has constant time complexity, O(1).
  • Memory Management : Arrays have fixed size, which makes memory management straightforward and predictable.
  • Data Organization : Arrays help organize data in a structured manner, making it easier to manage related elements.

  Disadvantages of Java Arrays

  • Fixed Size : Once an array is created, its size cannot be changed, which can lead to memory waste if the size is overestimated or insufficient storage if underestimated.
  • Type Homogeneity : Arrays can only store elements of the same data type, which may require additional handling for mixed types of data.
  • Insertion and Deletion : Inserting or deleting elements, especially in the middle of an array, can be costly as it may require shifting elements.

  Related Articles to the topic :

  Frequently Asked Questions – Java Arrays

  How can we initialize an array in Java?

  • Static Initialization : int[] arr = ;
  • Dynamic Initialization : int[] arr = new int[5];
  • Initialization with a loop : for (int i = 0; i

  Can we use an array of primitive types in Java?

  Yes, Java supports arrays of primitive types such as int , char , boolean , etc., as well as arrays of objects.

  How are multidimensional arrays represented in Java?

  Multidimensional arrays in Java are represented as arrays of arrays. For example, a two-dimensional array is declared as int[][] array , and it is effectively an array where each element is another array.

  Can we change the size of an array after it is created in Java?

  No, the size of an array in Java cannot be changed once it is initialized. Arrays are fixed-size. To work with a dynamically sized collection, consider using classes from the java.util package, such as ArrayList .

  Can we specify the size of an array as long in Java?

  No, we cannot specify the size of an array as long . The size of an array must be specified as an int . If a larger size is required, it must be handled using collections or other data structures.

  What is the direct superclass of an array in Java?

  The direct superclass of an array in Java is Object . Arrays inherit methods from the Object class, including toString() , equals() , and hashCode() .

  Which interfaces are implemented by arrays in Java?

  • Cloneable : Allows the array to be cloned using the clone() method.
  • java.io.Serializable : Enables arrays to be serialized.