When inserting into an empty circular singly linked list using the tail pointer, what should the new node's next pointer be set to?

When inserting into an empty circular singly linked list using the tail pointer, what should the new node's next pointer be set to?

• A. null
• B. head
• C. new.next = new
• D. new

Answer: (C)

In a circular singly linked list, every node must connect so the sequence loops back to the start. When inserting into an empty list with the tail pointer, you end up with a single node that serves as both the head and the tail. To keep the list circular, that lone node’s next pointer must point to itself. This is achieved by setting the new node’s next to itself, i.e., new.next = new. Setting it to null would break the circle, and there isn’t an existing head to point to in this empty case, so the only correct way to maintain the circular structure is to make the node reference itself.

In a circular singly linked list, every node must connect so the sequence loops back to the start. When inserting into an empty list with the tail pointer, you end up with a single node that serves as both the head and the tail. To keep the list circular, that lone node’s next pointer must point to itself. This is achieved by setting the new node’s next to itself, i.e., new.next = new. Setting it to null would break the circle, and there isn’t an existing head to point to in this empty case, so the only correct way to maintain the circular structure is to make the node reference itself.