Sort NumPy Arrays using Python

Being a computer science student you must have gone through the concept of sorting algorithms. In Python, we use sorting algorithms to sort items in a list. But what if we want to sort NumPy arrays? In this article, I will take you through how to sort NumPy arrays using Python.

Sorting NumPy Arrays

There are a bunch of sorting algorithms in computer science, for example:

1. Insertion Sort
2. Selection Sort
3. Merge Sort
4. Bubble Sort and many more.

All of these algorithms are used to sort values in a list or an array. The NumPy library provides an inbuild function for sorting the values inside a NumPy array. Below is how we sort a NumPy array by using the inbuilt sort function:

import numpy as np
a = np.array([34, 5, 89, 23, 76])
print(np.sort(a))

The sort function in the NumPy library works the same as the sort function in the Python programming language. But, what if we want to write a sorting algorithm to sort a NumPy array using Python without using the sort function? In the section below, I will take you through how to sort NumPy arrays using Python.

Sort NumPy Arrays using Python

Sorting values in a data structure is one of the favourite topics of coding interviews. NumPy array is also a data structure like a list or an array, so you should also know how to sort the values of a NumPy array using Python without using any sort function. Below is how to sort a NumPy array using Python:

def sorting(x):
    for i in range(len(x)):
        swap = i + np.argmin(x[i:])
        (x[i], x[swap]) = (x[swap], x[i])
    return x
print(sorting(a))

Also, Read – Python Projects with Source Code: Solved and Explained.

Conclusion

The above algorithm is based on the selection sort. It is a very common algorithm for sorting values in a data structure. I hope you liked this article on how to sort values of a NumPy array using Python without using any inbuilt function. Feel free to ask your valuable questions in the comments section below.