Python Program to get the last item from the array

An array is a data structure used to store a collection of homogeneous data elements. Each element in the array is identified by an index value or key.

Arrays in Python

Python doesn't have a built-in data structure to represent arrays, but it has a built-in array module for working with arrays. We can also use the NumPy package.

An array defined by the array module is ?

import array
arr = array.array('i', [1, 2, 3, 4])
print(arr)

array('i', [1, 2, 3, 4])

A NumPy array defined by the NumPy module is ?

import numpy as np
arr = np.array([1, 2, 3, 4])
print(arr)

[1 2 3 4]

Also, we can use Python lists to represent arrays by storing homogeneous items ?

arr = [1, 2, 3, 4]
print(arr)

[1, 2, 3, 4]

Input Output Scenarios

Assume we have an array with 5 elements. The output will display the last element.

Input array: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Output: 5

The value 5 is the last item of the given array.

Indexing in Python

To access array elements, we can use Python positive or negative index values ?

• Positive index ? Python sequences are zero-indexed, which means indexing starts from 0 to n-1. The last element is available at total_items - 1 index.

• Negative indexing ? Python negative indexing starts from -n to -1. The last element is available at -1 index.

Method 1: Using Lists with Negative Indexing

The simplest way to get the last element is using negative indexing with [-1] ?

# creating array
numbers = [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19] 

print("The original array is:", numbers) 

# get last element using negative indexing
result = numbers[-1]
print("The last element is:", result) 

The original array is: [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19]
The last element is: 19

Method 2: Using len() Function

The len() function returns the length of an object. We can use it to access the last element with len(list) - 1 ?

# creating array
numbers = [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19] 

print("The original array is:", numbers) 

# get last element using len()
result = numbers[len(numbers) - 1]
print("The last element is:", result) 

The original array is: [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19]
The last element is: 19

Method 3: Using NumPy Arrays

NumPy arrays also support negative indexing to access the last element ?

import numpy as np

# creating NumPy array
numpy_array = np.array([5, 10, 15, 20, 25])
print("The original array is:", numpy_array) 

# get the last element
result = numpy_array[-1]
print("The last element is:", result) 

The original array is: [ 5 10 15 20 25]
The last element is: 25

Method 4: Using Array Module

The built-in array module also supports negative indexing ?

import array

# creating integer array
int_array = array.array('i', [1, 3, 4, 8])

print("The original array is:", int_array) 

# get the last element
result = int_array[-1]
print("The last element is:", result)

The original array is: array('i', [1, 3, 4, 8])
The last element is: 8

Comparison

Conclusion

The most Pythonic way to get the last element from an array is using negative indexing with [-1]. This method works with lists, NumPy arrays, and array module objects, making it the preferred approach for accessing the last item.