getPrototypeOf

Return the prototype of a provided object.

Usage

var getPrototypeOf = require( '@stdlib/utils/get-prototype-of' );

getPrototypeOf( value )

Returns the prototype of an input value.

var proto = getPrototypeOf( {} );
// returns {}

Notes

  • In contrast to the native Object.getPrototypeOf, this function does not throw when provided null or undefined. Instead, similar to when provided any value with no inherited properties, the function returns null.

    var proto = getPrototypeOf( Object.create( null ) );
    // returns null
    
    proto = getPrototypeOf( null );
    // returns null
    
    proto = getPrototypeOf( void 0 );
    // returns null
    
  • Value arguments other than null or undefined are coerced to objects.

    var proto = getPrototypeOf( 'beep' );
    // returns String.prototype
    
    proto = getPrototypeOf( 5 );
    // returns Number.prototype
    

    This behavior matches ES6/ES2015 native Object.getPrototypeOf behavior. In ES5, the native Object.getPrototypeOf throws when provided non-object values.

Examples

var getPrototypeOf = require( '@stdlib/utils/get-prototype-of' );

var proto = getPrototypeOf( 'beep' );
// returns String.prototype

proto = getPrototypeOf( 5 );
// returns Number.prototype

proto = getPrototypeOf( true );
// returns Boolean.prototype

proto = getPrototypeOf( null );
// returns null

proto = getPrototypeOf( void 0 );
// returns null

proto = getPrototypeOf( [] );
// returns Array.prototype

proto = getPrototypeOf( {} );
// returns {}

proto = getPrototypeOf( function foo() {} );
// returns Function.prototype
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