C# Identifiers

C# Identifiers

All C# variables must be identified with unique names.

These unique names are called identifiers.

Identifiers can be short names (like x and y) or more descriptive names (age, sum, totalVolume).

Note: It is recommended to use descriptive names in order to create understandable and maintainable code:

Example

// Good
int minutesPerHour = 60;

// OK, but not so easy to understand what m actually is
int m = 60;

The general rules for naming variables are:

  • Names can contain letters, digits and the underscore character (_)
  • Names must begin with a letter or underscore
  • Names should start with a lowercase letter, and cannot contain whitespace
  • Names are case-sensitive (“myVar” and “myvar” are different variables)
  • Reserved words (like C# keywords, such as int or double) cannot be used as names