Question

Some time ago I asked a question in which I was told (in the commits) that using the term “multi-dimensional array” for a construct like this:

int **a;

Initialized like this:

a = malloc(n * sizeof(*a));
for (i = 0; i < n; ++ i)
    a[i] = malloc(m * sizeof(*a[i]));

is misleading and that this is “only an emulation of ” a multi-dimensional array. Not being a native English speaker, I am having a hard time figuring out what is the proper terminology. Unfortunately, the guy who complained about the terminology was of no help himself.

Sure enough, the term “emulation of multi-dimensional array” is too long to be actually used in text/conversation.

To sum up:

• What is the proper terminology for the construct above (specifically in C, if that makes a difference)?

Side question:

• Is this terminology language agnostic? If not, how is it called in C++ for example?

Note: I’d be happy if your answer is linked with a reference.
Edit: I understand the difference between this construct and int a[n][m];. That’s not the question.

Update

The memory allocated is not necessarily regular. This construction is more precise:

a = malloc(n * sizeof(*a));
for (i = 0; i < n; ++ i)
  if (needed[i])
    a[i] = malloc(m[i] * sizeof(*a[i]));
  else
    a[i] = NULL;

Answer 1

It’s an “array of (pointers to) arrays”, the term is understood across a variety of languages, and applies whether the lengths of the element arrays are equal (square AoAs) or not (jagged AoAs).