---
title: parent
framework: modelio
role: symbol
role_heading: Instance Property
path: modelio/mdlobject/parent
---

# parent

The parent object that contains this object.

## Declaration

```swift
weak var parent: MDLObject? { get set }
```

## Discussion

Discussion Many asset formats describe a hierarchy of transforms that model the spatial relationships between meshes, lights, and cameras in the asset. In such formats, hierarchic transforms are MDLObject instances whose children property references the objects affected by the transform, and those objects can be other MDLObject instances with children of their own. This property’s value is nil for the top-level objects in a MDLAsset instance.

## See Also

### Working with Object Hierarchies

- [children](modelio/mdlobject/children.md)
- [addChild(_:)](modelio/mdlobject/addchild(_:).md)
- [enumerateChildObjects(of:root:using:stopPointer:)](modelio/mdlobject/enumeratechildobjects(of:root:using:stoppointer:).md)
- [path](modelio/mdlobject/path.md)
- [atPath(_:)](modelio/mdlobject/atpath(_:).md)