# Arrays
## CS Concepts — The Codex Coding
**URL:** https://thecodex.expert/coding/concepts/arrays/
**Type:** concept | **Confidence:** high | **Last verified:** 2026-06-01

## CANONICAL DEFINITION
An array is an ordered collection of values stored in contiguous memory, where every element can be accessed in O(1) time by its integer index, computed as base_address + (index * element_size).

## REQUIRES
concepts/variables, concepts/loops

## ENABLES
data-structures/arrays, algorithms/sorting, concepts/objects

## COMMONLY CONFUSED WITH
Python list != C array (list stores references); slice creates copy in Python; OOB behaviour: UB in C, exception in Python/Java, panic in Rust

## SOURCES
- ISO C17 §6.5.6
- Java Language Specification §10
- Python Language Reference §3.3.6
- NumPy ndarray docs

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