Namespaces and Scope in Python
Last Updated :
11 Jun, 2025
What is namespace:
A namespace is a system that has a unique name for each and every object in Python. An object might be a variable or a method. Python itself maintains a namespace in the form of a Python dictionary. Let's go through an example, a directory-file system structure in computers. Needless to say, that one can have multiple directories having a file with the same name inside every directory. But one can get directed to the file, one wishes, just by specifying the absolute path to the file.
Real-time example, the role of a namespace is like a surname. One might not find a single "Alice" in the class there might be multiple "Alice" but when you particularly ask for "Alice Lee" or "Alice Clark" (with a surname), there will be only one (time being don't think of both first name and surname are same for multiple students).
On similar lines, the Python interpreter understands what exact method or variable one is trying to point to in the code, depending upon the namespace. So, the division of the word itself gives a little more information. Its Name (which means name, a unique identifier) + Space(which talks something related to scope). Here, a name might be of any Python method or variable and space depends upon the location from where is trying to access a variable or a method.
Types of namespaces :
When Python interpreter runs solely without any user-defined modules, methods, classes, etc. Some functions like print(), id() are always present, these are built-in namespaces. When a user creates a module, a global namespace gets created, later the creation of local functions creates the local namespace. The built-in namespace encompasses the global namespace and the global namespace encompasses the local namespace.

The lifetime of a namespace :
A lifetime of a namespace depends upon the scope of objects, if the scope of an object ends, the lifetime of that namespace comes to an end. Hence, it is not possible to access the inner namespace's objects from an outer namespace.
Example:
Python
# var1 is in the global namespace
var1 = 5
def some_func():
# var2 is in the local namespace
var2 = 6
def some_inner_func():
# var3 is in the nested local
# namespace
var3 = 7
As shown in the following figure, the same object name can be present in multiple namespaces as isolation between the same name is maintained by their namespace.

But in some cases, one might be interested in updating or processing global variables only, as shown in the following example, one should mark it explicitly as global and the update or process. Note that the line "count = count +1" references the global variable and therefore uses the global variable, but compare this to the same line written "count = 1". Then the line "global count" is absolutely needed according to scope rules.
Python
# Python program processing
# global variable
count = 5
def some_method():
global count
count = count + 1
print(count)
some_method()
Output:
6
Scope of Objects in Python :
Scope refers to the coding region from which a particular Python object is accessible. Hence one cannot access any particular object from anywhere from the code, the accessing has to be allowed by the scope of the object.
Let's take an example to have a detailed understanding of the same:
Example 1:
Python
# Python program showing
# a scope of object
def some_func():
print("Inside some_func")
def some_inner_func():
var = 10
print("Inside inner function, value of var:",var)
some_inner_func()
print("Try printing var from outer function: ",var)
some_func()
Output:
Inside some_func
Inside inner function, value of var: 10
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/home/1eb47bb3eac2fa36d6bfe5d349dfcb84.py", line 8, in
some_func()
File "/home/1eb47bb3eac2fa36d6bfe5d349dfcb84.py", line 7, in some_func
print("Try printing var from outer function: ",var)
NameError: name 'var' is not defined
Here we can see if try to access element outside the scope it will generate error.
Similar Reads
Python Tutorial | Learn Python Programming Language Python Tutorial â Python is one of the most popular programming languages. Itâs simple to use, packed with features and supported by a wide range of libraries and frameworks. Its clean syntax makes it beginner-friendly.Python is:A high-level language, used in web development, data science, automatio
10 min read
Python Interview Questions and Answers Python is the most used language in top companies such as Intel, IBM, NASA, Pixar, Netflix, Facebook, JP Morgan Chase, Spotify and many more because of its simplicity and powerful libraries. To crack their Online Assessment and Interview Rounds as a Python developer, we need to master important Pyth
15+ min read
Python OOPs Concepts Object Oriented Programming is a fundamental concept in Python, empowering developers to build modular, maintainable, and scalable applications. By understanding the core OOP principles (classes, objects, inheritance, encapsulation, polymorphism, and abstraction), programmers can leverage the full p
11 min read
Python Projects - Beginner to Advanced Python is one of the most popular programming languages due to its simplicity, versatility, and supportive community. Whether youâre a beginner eager to learn the basics or an experienced programmer looking to challenge your skills, there are countless Python projects to help you grow.Hereâs a list
10 min read
Python Exercise with Practice Questions and Solutions Python Exercise for Beginner: Practice makes perfect in everything, and this is especially true when learning Python. If you're a beginner, regularly practicing Python exercises will build your confidence and sharpen your skills. To help you improve, try these Python exercises with solutions to test
9 min read
Python Programs Practice with Python program examples is always a good choice to scale up your logical understanding and programming skills and this article will provide you with the best sets of Python code examples.The below Python section contains a wide collection of Python programming examples. These Python co
11 min read
Enumerate() in Python enumerate() function adds a counter to each item in a list or other iterable. It turns the iterable into something we can loop through, where each item comes with its number (starting from 0 by default). We can also turn it into a list of (number, item) pairs using list().Let's look at a simple exam
3 min read
Python Data Types Python Data types are the classification or categorization of data items. It represents the kind of value that tells what operations can be performed on a particular data. Since everything is an object in Python programming, Python data types are classes and variables are instances (objects) of thes
9 min read
Python Introduction Python was created by Guido van Rossum in 1991 and further developed by the Python Software Foundation. It was designed with focus on code readability and its syntax allows us to express concepts in fewer lines of code.Key Features of PythonPythonâs simple and readable syntax makes it beginner-frien
3 min read
Input and Output in Python Understanding input and output operations is fundamental to Python programming. With the print() function, we can display output in various formats, while the input() function enables interaction with users by gathering input during program execution. Taking input in PythonPython input() function is
8 min read