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How to Access Parent Class Attributes and Methods in Python

Learn how to use super() and direct access to call parent class methods, initialize inherited instance variables, and retrieve class-level attributes in Python inheritance.

In object-oriented programming, inheritance allows child classes to inherit and access attributes and methods from their parent classes.

This guide explains how to access parent class members (variables and methods) from within a child class in Python, using super() and direct access.

Accessing Parent Class Instance Variables

To access instance variables initialized in the parent class, you must call the parent's __init__ method from within the child's __init__. The best way to do this is with super():

class Employee():
    cls_id = 'emp-cls'              # Class variable

    def __init__(self, name):
        self.salary = 100           # Instance variable
        self.name = name            # Instance variable


class Developer(Employee):
    def __init__(self, name):
        super().__init__(name)      # Call parent's __init__

        print(self.salary)          # Output: 100
        print(self.name)            # Output: tomnolan


d1 = Developer('tomnolan')
print(d1.salary)  # Output: 100
  • The super().__init__(name) line calls the parent class's constructor (__init__ method).
  • This initializes the instance variables defined in the Employee class (self.salary and self.name), making them accessible to the Developer instance.

Accessing Parent Class Variables (Class-Level Attributes)

Class variables (attributes defined directly within the class, outside of any method) are accessible directly on the instance or on the class itself.

class Employee():
    cls_id = 'emp-cls'              # Class variable

class Developer(Employee):
    def __init__(self, name):
        print(self.cls_id)          # Accessing parent class variable using self
        print(Developer.cls_id)     # Accessing parent class variable using class

d1 = Developer('tomnolan')          # Output: emp-cls

print(d1.cls_id)                    # Output: emp-cls (accessing through instance)
print(Developer.cls_id)             # Output: emp-cls (accessing through class)
  • Class variables are shared among all instances of the class and its subclasses.

Accessing Parent Class Methods

To call methods defined in the parent class, you can use super() again:

class Employee():
    def __init__(self, name):
        self.name = name
        self.salary = 100

    def greet(self):
        print(f'Hello {self.name}')

class Developer(Employee):
    def __init__(self, name):
        super().__init__(name)
        print(self.salary)
        self.greet()  # Call parent's method

d1 = Developer('tomnolan')
print(d1.salary) # Output: 100
d1.greet()       # Output: Hello tomnolan

Output:

100
Hello tomnolan
100
Hello tomnolan
  • Within the Developer class, self.greet() calls the greet method defined in the Employee class. self is automatically passed to the parent's method.

Getting the Name of a Parent Class

From the Child Class

To get the name(s) of the immediate parent class(es) from within the child class, use the __bases__ attribute of the class object.

class Person():
    pass


class Employee(Person):
    pass


class Developer(Employee):

    def get_parent_class_names(self):
        immediate_parents = self.__class__.__bases__
        print(immediate_parents) # Output: (<class '__main__.Employee'>,)
        for parent in immediate_parents:
            print(parent.__name__) # Employee

d1 = Developer()
d1.get_parent_class_names()
  • self.__class__.__bases__ returns the parent of the current class, not an instance.

From an Instance of the Child Class

To get the parent class name from an instance of the child class:

class Person():
    pass

class Employee(Person):
    pass

class Developer(Employee):
    pass

d1 = Developer()

immediate_parents = type(d1).__bases__
immediate_parents = d1.__class__.__bases__

print(immediate_parents)  # Output: (<class '__main__.Employee'>,)
print(immediate_parents[0].__name__) # Output: Employee
  • type(d1) gets the class of the instance (which is Developer).
  • . __bases__ is then accessed on the class, not the instance, to retrieve a tuple of base classes.
  • [0] accesses the first parent class (in this case, there's only one).
  • .__name__ gets the name of the class as a string.
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