Is Method Overloading a Type of Polymorphism?

Question

I was studying about static and dynamic polymorphism and got these links:

http://guruzon.com/1/oop-concepts/polymorphism/what-is-polymorphism-example-tutorial-uml-diagram-notation

http://www.coderanch.com/t/379004/java/java/static-polymorphism-dynamic-polymorphism

http://javarevisited.blogspot.in/2011/08/what-is-polymorphism-in-java-example.html

In all these links , It has been said that Overloading is an example of polymorphism , then I came across two more places where it has been said that overloading has nothing to do with polymorphism, the links are:

Is Method Overloading considered polymorphism?

Head First Java 2nd Edition Chapter 7 (Inheritence and Polymorphism) Last topic: Overloading a method Screenshot of headfirst page .

Now I am not able to figure out whether it is a kind of polymorphism or not and if it is not the is there anything called static polymorphism in OOPs ?

"Polymorphism" is just a word and doesn't have a globally agreed-upon, precise definition. You will not be enlightened by either a "yes" or a "no" answer to your question because the difference will be in the chosen definition of "polymorphism" and not in the essence of Java's overloading. — Marko Topolnik, Dec 26 '13 at 12:23
@ALBI: I realise that, but your question is essentially a duplicate. If you dispute/etc. the answers at the existing question, you should post comments, etc. there. — Oliver Charlesworth, Dec 26 '13 at 12:26
@MarkoTopolnik: That would make a great answer to the original (duplicate) question! — Oliver Charlesworth, Dec 26 '13 at 12:27
@OliCharlesworth I've added it in although I'm afraid it's not going to make much difference there :( — Marko Topolnik, Dec 26 '13 at 12:33
@MarkoTopolnik: You're right, sadly. Nevertheless, it got a +1 from me! — Oliver Charlesworth, Dec 26 '13 at 12:35

score 2 · Answer 1 · answered Dec 26 '13 at 12:16

Sometimes, method overloading is indeed referred to as an example of "static polymorphism". This designation is somewhat arbitrary indeed, but it is possible to make a weak defense in its favor.

The concept of static polymorphism does exist, and it is not limited to OOP. Polymorphism (an ability to present the same behavior in different forms) can be static when polymorphic behavior is achieved based on compile-time type information. The most common example of such polymorphism is templates of C++: all calls are resolved statically, yet the behavior of a template is altered based on the static type of its type parameters.

Overloading could be thought of as a primitive form of choosing the behavior based on the static type of an object, too. However, this view of the overloading does not help understanding of the concept, and also makes it harder for the newcomers to understand the "real" (i.e. dynamic) polymorphism. That is why the term "static polymorphism" is not common in books on Java.

[Ad hoc (Overloading) Polymorphism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hoc_polymorphism) seems to be the preferred term .. and while there are classic oft-cited papers from 1967 and 1985 it definitely isn't mainstream in modern OOP, esp. in Java. — user2864740, Jun 19 '14 at 08:35

Is Method Overloading a Type of Polymorphism?

1 Answers1

Linked