Python Inheritance
Python Inheritance
Inheritance allows us to define a class that inherits all the methods and properties from another class.
Parent class is the class being inherited from, also called base class.
Child class is the class that inherits from another class, also called derived class.
Create a Parent Class
Any class can be a parent class, so the syntax is the same as creating any other class:
Example
Create a class named Person, with
firstname and lastname properties,
and a printname method:
class Person:
def __init__(self, fname, lname):
self.firstname = fname
self.lastname = lname
def printname(self):
print(self.firstname,
self.lastname)
#Use the Person class to create an object, and then
execute the printname method:
x = Person("John", "Doe")
x.printname()
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Create a Child Class
To create a class that inherits the functionality from another class, send the parent class as a parameter when creating the child class:
Example
Create a class named Student, which will inherit the properties
and methods from
the Person class:
class Student(Person):
pass
Note: Use the pass
keyword when you do not want to add any other properties or methods to the
class.
Now the Student class has the same properties and methods as the Person class.
Example
Use the Student class to create an object,
and then execute the printname method:
x = Student("Mike", "Olsen")
x.printname()
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Add the __init__() Function
So far we have created a child class that inherits the properties and methods from its parent.
We want to add the __init__() function to the child class (instead of the pass keyword).
Note: The __init__() function is called automatically every time the class is being used to create a new object.
Example
Add the __init__() function to the
Student class:
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname):
#add properties etc.
When you add the __init__() function, the child class will no longer inherit
the parent's __init__() function.
Note: The child's __init__()
function overrides the inheritance of the parent's
__init__() function.
To keep the inheritance of the parent's __init__()
function, add a call to the
parent's __init__() function:
Example
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname):
Person.__init__(self, fname, lname)
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Now we have successfully added the __init__() function, and kept the
inheritance of the parent class, and we are ready to add functionality in the
__init__() function.
Use the super() Function
Python also has a super() function that
will make the child class inherit all the methods and properties from its
parent:
Example
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname):
super().__init__(fname, lname)
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By using the super() function, you do not
have to use the name of the parent element, it will automatically inherit the
methods and properties from its parent.
Add Properties
Example
Add a property called graduationyear to the
Student class:
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname):
super().__init__(fname, lname)
self.graduationyear
= 2019
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In the example below, the year 2019 should be a variable, and passed into the
Student class when creating student objects.
To do so, add another parameter in the __init__() function:
Example
Add a year parameter, and pass the correct
year when creating objects:
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname, year):
super().__init__(fname, lname)
self.graduationyear
= year
x = Student("Mike", "Olsen", 2019)
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Add Methods
Example
Add a method called welcome to the
Student class:
class Student(Person):
def __init__(self, fname, lname, year):
super().__init__(fname, lname)
self.graduationyear
= year
def welcome(self):
print("Welcome",
self.firstname, self.lastname, "to the class of", self.graduationyear)
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If you add a method in the child class with the same name as a function in the parent class, the inheritance of the parent method will be overridden.