Excerpt
This article explains different techniques to convert a string to camel case in Python, including title() method, regex, libraries, loops, formatting, and online tools.
Camel case is a common naming convention in programming where each word is capitalized and concatenated together without spaces. For example, “helloWorld” or “fullName”. In Python, there are several different techniques to convert regular strings to camel case.
Introduction
Camel case, also referred to as camelCase, is a case styling where the first letter of each word is capitalized, with no spaces between words. Some examples are:
- “helloWorld”
- “fullName”
- “mobileApplication”
Camel case is frequently used for class names, variable names, method names, and more in programming.
Python provides multiple ways to convert a regular string to camel case, including:
- Using the built-in title() method
- Regular expressions
- External libraries
- Looping over the string
- String formatting
- Online conversion tools
Each approach has its own advantages. This article will go through examples of each technique.
Using title() Method
The easiest way to camel case a string in Python is using the built-in title() method. This capitalizes the first letter of each word in the string:
1text = "hello world"
2camel_cased = text.title()
3# camel_cased = "Hello World"
title() requires no additional libraries and converts the text to camel case in one line.
Regular Expressions
Regular expressions (regex) can substitute uppercase letters into the correct positions of a string to convert to camel case.
For example:
1import re
2
3text = "hello world"
4text = re.sub(r"(^\w)|(\s+\w)", lambda x: x.group(0).upper(), text)
5print(text)
6# "HelloWorld"
Here re.sub() performs a regex substitution, locating word boundaries and uppercasing.
External Libraries
There are dedicated Python libraries for converting strings to camel case, like camelcase and hump:
1from camelcase import CamelCase
2
3text = "hello world"
4
5c = CamelCase()
6print(c.hump(text)) # "helloWorld"
These provide simple camel case functions without needing to write the logic yourself.
Loop Over String
We can iterate through the string and capitalize the first letter of each word manually:
1text = "hello world"
2words = text.split()
3camel_cased = words[0].lower()
4
5for word in words[1:]:
6 camel_cased += word.capitalize()
7
8print(camel_cased) # "helloWorld"
This splits the words, lowercases the first, then capitalizes the rest.
Formatting Strings
For more control, we can use %-formatting or f-strings to format capital letters programmatically:
1text = "hello world"
2words = text.split()
3
4formatted = f"{words[0].lower()}{words[1].capitalize()}"
5
6print(formatted) # "helloWorld"
Formatting allows flexible casing rules within the string.
Online Conversion Tools
Sites like CamelCase Converter make converting to camel case easy.
Just paste the string and get the converted output - no code required!
When to Use Camel Case
Some common uses of camel case in Python include:
- Class names -
MyClassName - Variable names -
myVariableName - Method names -
runSimulation()
Camel case improves readability with capitalization rather than underscores.
Conclusion
In summary, Python offers many approaches to convert strings to camel case, including:
- title() method
- Regular expressions
- External libraries
- Looping over strings
- String formatting
- Online tools
The title() method and online converters are easiest, while regex and libraries provide more power for complex cases.
Focus on readability and simplicity when converting to camel case in Python. Consistent casing can improve code organization.
