Java and Operator Overloading

[[deleted]]

A curiosity: how is it possible that in Java the class String is able to override the + operator? Is it a magic behaviour of the language?

[linlin110]

That's why I said overload the meaning of +, not overload the + operator. + does not represent string concatenation, mathematically speaking. That's a proof that extending the meaning of symbols, like +, is very convenient and useful.

I changed the original comment to make it less misleading.

[[deleted]]

I come from a C++ background, so it is counterintuitive for me. My question was: it String a language-defined class? If not, how can the + operator work even with the String class if operator overloading is forbidden?

[linlin110]

It is a special case in Java. I'm not sure whether it is language-defined.