Arrays (C# Programming Guide)
An array is a data structure that contains several variables of the same type. Arrays are declared with a type:
type[] arrayName;
The following examples create single-dimensional, multidimensional, and jagged arrays:
class TestArraysClass
{
static void Main()
{
// Declare a single-dimensional array
int[] array1 = new int[5];
// Declare and set array element values
int[] array2 = new int[] { 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 };
// Alternative syntax
int[] array3 = { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 };
// Declare a two dimensional array
int[,] multiDimensionalArray1 = new int[2, 3];
// Declare and set array element values
int[,] multiDimensionalArray2 = { { 1, 2, 3 }, { 4, 5, 6 } };
// Declare a jagged array
int[][] jaggedArray = new int[6][];
// Set the values of the first array in the jagged array structure
jaggedArray[0] = new int[4] { 1, 2, 3, 4 };
}
}
Array Overview
An array has the following properties:
An array can be Single-Dimensional, Multidimensional or Jagged.
The default value of numeric array elements are set to zero, and reference elements are set to null.
A jagged array is an array of arrays, and therefore its elements are reference types and are initialized to null.
Arrays are zero indexed: an array with n elements is indexed from 0 to n-1.
Array elements can be of any type, including an array type.
Array types are reference types derived from the abstract base type Array. Since this type implements IEnumerable and IEnumerable<T>, you can use foreach iteration on all arrays in C#.
Related Sections
C# Language Specification
For more information, see the following sections in the C# Language Specification:
1.8 Arrays
12 Arrays
See Also
Concepts
Arrays in the Common Type System