Merge Sort Algorithm in C Programming Language

Merge Sort Algorithm in C language is a quick sort algorithm for sorting. It is one of the most popular sorting algorithms in computer programming. It is also known as Divide and Conquer algorithm.

The MergeSort Algorithm:

MergeSort(A, p, r):
if p > r
return
q = (p+r)/2
mergeSort(A, p, q)
mergeSort(A, q+1, r)
merge(A, p, q, r)

Merge Sort Algorithm Program Code:

#include<stdlib.h>
#include<stdio.h>
// Merge Function
void merge(int arr[], int l, int m, int r)
{
int i, j, k;
int n1 = m - l + 1;
int n2 = r - m;
int L[n1], R[n2];
for (i = 0; i < n1; i++)
L[i] = arr[l + i];
for (j = 0; j < n2; j++)
R[j] = arr[m + 1+ j];
i = 0;
j = 0;
k = l;
while (i < n1 && j < n2)
{
if (L[i] <= R[j])
{
arr[k] = L[i];
i++;
}
else
{
arr[k] = R[j];
j++;
}
k++;
}
while (i < n1)
{
arr[k] = L[i];
i++;
k++;
}
while (j < n2)
{
arr[k] = R[j];
j++;
k++;
}
}

You can try this code in Borland C++ IDE, as it supports C language also.

Merge Sort Algorithm in C Example:

#include <stdio.h>

#define max 10

int a[11] = { 10, 14, 19, 26, 27, 31, 33, 35, 42, 44, 0 };
int b[10];

void merging(int low, int mid, int high) {
int l1, l2, i;

for(l1 = low, l2 = mid + 1, i = low; l1 <= mid && l2 <= high; i++) {
if(a[l1] <= a[l2])
b[i] = a[l1++];
else
b[i] = a[l2++];
}

while(l1 <= mid)
b[i++] = a[l1++];

while(l2 <= high)
b[i++] = a[l2++];

for(i = low; i <= high; i++)
a[i] = b[i];
}

void sort(int low, int high) {
int mid;

if(low < high) {
mid = (low + high) / 2;
sort(low, mid);
sort(mid+1, high);
merging(low, mid, high);
} else {
return;
}
}

int main() {
int i;

printf("List before sorting\n");

for(i = 0; i <= max; i++)
printf("%d ", a[i]);

sort(0, max);

printf("\nList after sorting\n");

for(i = 0; i <= max; i++)
printf("%d ", a[i]);
}

Output:

List before sorting
10 14 19 26 27 31 33 35 42 44 0
List after sorting
0 10 14 19 26 27 31 33 35 42 44

Still having difficulty to understand, then you can watch this video tutorial to understand Merge Sort Algorithm: