ParentHeaderCode

ParentHeaderCode is a term used in some documentation and library designs to describe a context object that keeps track of header relationships in a document or generated template. The concept helps ensure that headers at different levels—such as level 1 (h1) and level 2 (h2)—are created with correct nesting, accessibility attributes, and consistent identifiers.

Definition and role: The ParentHeaderCode acts as a reference to the header elements currently in scope and to their immediate parent headers. It typically carries fields such as level or depth, a text or label for the header, an identifier, and a link or pointer to the parent header. It may also expose methods or helpers to render the header in the appropriate markup and to compute the hierarchical path.

Structure and behavior: In implementation, a header generation component pushes a new header context when a header is started and pops it when the header ends. The context uses the parent reference to determine the correct level, prevent invalid jumps in nesting, and generate unique IDs by concatenating the parent's ID with the current label.

Usage: When generating a document with nested sections, developers interact with a header factory or template engine that updates the ParentHeaderCode as sections are entered or left. The pattern helps with accessibility and with tools that rely on semantic heading structures.

Variations: Some systems call this concept HeaderContext, HeaderStack, or HeaderContextManager. The exact API varies, but the goal is to maintain a coherent header hierarchy across dynamic content.

See also: Header hierarchy, Accessibility, Document Object Model, Templating engines.