Jagged Array

Jagged Array :

In Java, a jagged array is an array of arrays where each element can be an array of different lengths. This allows for the creation of multidimensional arrays with varying lengths among the nested arrays.

Unlike a regular 2D array where all rows have the same number of columns, a jagged array allows each row (element) to have a different length.

Here's an analogy to help understand:

Imagine a library where each shelf contains a different number of books. Each shelf is like a row in a jagged array, and the books on each shelf are like the elements in the arrays within the jagged array. One shelf might have 5 books, another might have 3, and so on. This variability in the number of books on each shelf represents the varying lengths of arrays within a jagged array.

 In Java, you can create a jagged array by first declaring an array of arrays and then initializing each array separately. For instance:

This code creates a 2D array where the outer array (jaggedArray) has three rows, and each row is an array of integers. Each row can have a different number of elements (columns). This flexibility is the essence of a jagged array. The loop is used to access and print the elements in the jagged array.

Jagged arrays are useful when you need to work with varying sizes of data within a multidimensional array structure.