VNAME Function

Returns the name of the specified variable.

Category:	Variable Information
Restriction:	Use only with the DATA step

Syntax

VNAME (var)

specifies a variable that is expressed as a scalar or as an array reference.

Restriction

You cannot use an expression as an argument.

If the VNAME function returns a value to a variable that has not yet been assigned a length, by default the variable is assigned a length of 200.

VNAME returns the name of the specified variable. VNAMEX, however, evaluates the argument to determine a variable name. If the name is a known variable name, the function returns that name. Otherwise, the function returns a blank.
VNAME does not accept an expression as an argument. VNAMEX accepts expressions, but the value of the specified expression cannot denote an array reference.
VNAME has the same functionality as CALL VNAME.
Related functions return the value of other variable attributes, such as the variable label, informat, and format, among others. For a list, see the Variable Information functions in SAS Functions and CALL Routines by Category.

The following SAS statements produce this result.

SAS Statement	Result
array x(3) x1-x3; y=vname(x(1)); put y=;	y=x1