legend {base} | R Documentation

## Add Legends to Plots

### Description

This function can be used to add legends to plots. Note that a call to the function `locator` can be used in place of the `x` and `y` arguments.

### Usage

    legend(x, y = NULL, legend, fill = NULL, col = "black", lty, lwd, pch,
           angle = NULL, density = NULL, bty = "o", bg = par("bg"),
           pt.bg = NA, cex = 1, xjust = 0, yjust = 1,
           x.intersp = 1, y.intersp = 1, adj = c(0, 0.5),
           text.width = NULL, merge = do.lines && has.pch, trace = FALSE,
           plot = TRUE, ncol = 1, horiz = FALSE)

### Arguments

`x, y` | the x and y co-ordinates to be used to position the legend. They can be specified in any way which is accepted by `xy.coords`: See Details.
`legend` | a vector of text values or an `expression` of length >= 1, or a `call` (as resulting from `substitute`) to appear in the legend.
`fill` | if specified, this argument will cause boxes filled with the specified colors (or shaded in the specified colors) to appear beside the legend text.
`col` | the color of points or lines appearing in the legend.
`lty,lwd` | the line types and widths for lines appearing in the legend. One of these two must be specified for line drawing.
`pch` | the plotting symbols appearing in the legend, either as vector of 1-character strings, or one (multi character) string. Must be specified for symbol drawing.
`angle` | angle of shading lines.
`density` | the density of shading lines, if numeric and positive. If `NULL` or negative or `NA` color filling is assumed.
`bty` | the type of box to be drawn around the legend. The allowed values are `"o"` (the default) and `"n"`.
`bg` | the background color for the legend box. (Note that this is only used if `bty = "n"`.)
`pt.bg` | the background color for the `points`.
`cex` | character expansion factor relative to current `par("cex")`.
`xjust` | how the legend is to be justified relative to the legend x location. A value of 0 means left justified, 0.5 means centered and 1 means right justified.
`yjust` | the same as `xjust` for the legend y location.
`x.intersp` | character interspacing factor for horizontal (x) spacing.
`y.intersp` | the same for vertical (y) line distances.
`adj` | numeric of length 1 or 2; the string adjustment for legend text. Useful for y-adjustment when `labels` are plotmath expressions.
`text.width` | the width of the legend text in x (`"user"`) coordinates. Defaults to the proper value computed by `strwidth(legend)`.
`merge` | logical; if `TRUE`, “merge” points and lines but not filled boxes. Defaults to `TRUE` if there are points and lines.
`trace` | logical; if `TRUE`, shows how `legend` does all its magical computations.
`plot` | logical. If `FALSE`, nothing is plotted but the sizes are returned.
`ncol` | the number of columns in which to set the legend items (default is 1, a vertical legend).
`horiz` | logical; if `TRUE`, set the legend horizontally rather than vertically (specifying `horiz` overrides the `ncol` specification).

### Details

Arguments `x, y, legend` are interpreted in a non-standard way to allow the coordinates to be specified via one or two arguments. If `legend` is missing and `y` is not numeric, it is assumed that the second argument is intended to be `legend` and that the first argument specifies the coordinates.

The coordinates can be specified in any way which is accepted by `xy.coords`. If this gives the coordinates of one point, it is used as the top-left coordinate of the rectangle containing the legend. If it gives the coordinates of two points, these specify opposite corners of the rectangle (either pair of corners, in any order).

“Attribute” arguments such as `col`, `pch`, `lty`, etc, are recycled if necessary. `merge` is not.

Points are drawn after lines in order that they can cover the line with their background color `pt.bg`, if applicable.

See the examples for how to right-justify labels.

### Value

A list with list components

`rect`

a list with components

`w, h`
  positive numbers giving width and height of the legend's box.
`left, top`
  x and y coordinates of upper left corner of the box.

`text`

a list with components

`x, y`
  numeric vectors of length `length(legend)`, giving the x and y coordinates of the legend's text(s).

returned invisibly.

### References

Becker, R. A., Chambers, J. M. and Wilks, A. R. (1988) The New S Language. Wadsworth & Brooks/Cole.

### See Also

`plot`, `barplot` which uses `legend()`, and `text` for more examples of math expressions.

### Examples

    ## Run the example in '?matplot' or the following:
    leg.txt <- c("Setosa     Petals", "Setosa     Sepals",
                 "Versicolor Petals", "Versicolor Sepals")
    y.leg <- c(4.5, 3, 2.1, 1.4, .7)
    cexv  <- c(1.2, 1, 4/5, 2/3, 1/2)
    matplot(c(1,8), c(0,4.5), type = "n", xlab = "Length", ylab = "Width",
            main = "Petal and Sepal Dimensions in Iris Blossoms")
    for (i in seq(cexv)) {
      text  (1, y.leg[i]-.1, paste("cex=",formatC(cexv[i])), cex=.8, adj = 0)
      legend(3, y.leg[i], leg.txt, pch = "sSvV", col = c(1, 3), cex = cexv[i])
    }

    ## 'merge = TRUE' for merging lines & points:
    x <- seq(-pi, pi, len = 65)
    plot(x, sin(x), type = "l", ylim = c(-1.2, 1.8), col = 3, lty = 2)
    points(x, cos(x), pch = 3, col = 4)
    lines(x, tan(x), type = "b", lty = 1, pch = 4, col = 6)
    title("legend(..., lty = c(2, -1, 1), pch = c(-1,3,4), merge = TRUE)",
          cex.main = 1.1)
    legend(-1, 1.9, c("sin", "cos", "tan"), col = c(3,4,6),
           lty = c(2, -1, 1), pch = c(-1, 3, 4), merge = TRUE, bg='gray90')

    ## right-justifying a set of labels: thanks to Uwe Ligges
    x <- 1:5; y1 <- 1/x; y2 <- 2/x
    plot(rep(x, 2), c(y1, y2), type="n", xlab="x", ylab="y")
    lines(x, y1); lines(x, y2, lty=2)
    temp <- legend(5, 2, legend = c(" ", " "),
                   text.width = strwidth("1,000,000"),
                   lty = 1:2, xjust = 1, yjust = 1)
    text(temp$rect$left + temp$rect$w, temp$text$y,
         c("1,000", "1,000,000"), pos=2)

    ##--- log scaled Examples ------------------------------
    leg.txt <- c("a one", "a two")

    par(mfrow = c(2,2))
    for(ll in c("","x","y","xy")) {
      plot(2:10, log=ll, main=paste("log = '",ll,"'", sep=""))
      abline(1,1)
      lines(2:3,3:4, col=2) #
      points(2,2, col=3)    #
      rect(2,3,3,2, col=4)
      text(c(3,3),2:3, c("rect(2,3,3,2, col=4)",
                         "text(c(3,3),2:3,\"c(rect(...)\")"), adj = c(0,.3))
      legend(list(x=2,y=8), legend = leg.txt, col=2:3, pch=1:2,
             lty=1, merge=TRUE)#, trace=TRUE)
    }
    par(mfrow=c(1,1))

    ##-- Math expressions:  ------------------------------
    x <- seq(-pi, pi, len = 65)
    plot(x, sin(x), type="l", col = 2,xlab=expression(phi),ylab=expression(f(phi)))
    abline(h=-1:1, v=pi/2*(-6:6), col="gray90")
    lines(x, cos(x), col = 3, lty = 2)
    ex.cs1 <- expression(plain(sin) * phi,  paste("cos", phi))# 2 ways
    str(legend(-3, .9, ex.cs1, lty=1:2, plot=FALSE, adj = c(0, .6)))# adj y !
        legend(-3, .9, ex.cs1, lty=1:2, col=2:3,    adj = c(0, .6))

    x <- rexp(100, rate = .5)
    hist(x, main = "Mean and Median of a Skewed Distribution")
    abline(v = mean(x),   col=2, lty=2, lwd=2)
    abline(v = median(x), col=3, lty=3, lwd=2)
    ex12 <- expression(bar(x) == sum(over(x[i], n), i==1, n),
                       hat(x) == median(x[i], i==1,n))
    str(legend(4.1, 30, ex12, col = 2:3, lty=2:3, lwd=2))

    ## 'Filled' boxes -- for more, see example(plotfactor)
    op <- par(bg="white") # to get an opaque box for the legend
    data(PlantGrowth)
    plot(cut(weight, 3) ~ group, data = PlantGrowth,
         col = NULL, density = 16*(1:3))
    par(op)

    ## Using 'ncol' :
    x <- 0:64/64
    matplot(x, outer(x, 1:7, function(x, k) sin(k * pi * x)),
            type = "o", col = 1:7, ylim = c(-1, 1.5), pch = "*")
    op <- par(bg="antiquewhite1")
    legend(0, 1.5, paste("sin(",1:7,"pi * x)"), col=1:7, lty=1:7, pch = "*",
           ncol = 4, cex=.8)
    legend(.8,1.2, paste("sin(",1:7,"pi * x)"), col=1:7, lty=1:7, pch = "*",cex=.8)
    legend(0, -.1, paste("sin(",1:4,"pi * x)"), col=1:4, lty=1:4, ncol=2, cex=.8)
    legend(0, -.4, paste("sin(",5:7,"pi * x)"), col=5:7,  pch=24, ncol=2, cex=1.5,
           pt.bg="pink")
    par(op)

    ## point covering line :
    y <- sin(3*pi*x)
    plot(x, y, type="l", col="blue", main = "points with bg & legend(*, pt.bg)")
    points(x, y, pch=21, bg="white")
    legend(.4,1, "sin(c x)", pch=21, pt.bg="white", lty=1, col = "blue")

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