Understanding from . import views in Django: How Python Knows the “Current Folder”

[Rajeev Bagra]

When beginners see this line in Django:

from . import views

it often raises a good question:

How does Python know where to look?

Does it mean the folder where you ran the project?
Does it mean the root folder like wiki?
Or the folder where the file itself is placed?

Let’s make it simple.

---

Short Answer

The dot . means:

Import from the same package/folder where this file is located.

So if this code is inside:

encyclopedia/urls.py

Then:

from . import views

means:

import encyclopedia.views

Python looks beside urls.py for a file named:

encyclopedia/views.py

---

Example Django Structure

wiki/
│ manage.py
│
├── wiki/
│ settings.py
│ urls.py
│
└── encyclopedia/
init.py
urls.py
views.py
models.py

Inside:

encyclopedia/urls.py

you may write:

from . import views

This tells Python:

➡️ Stay inside the encyclopedia package
➡️ Import views.py

---

Important Clarification

It does not mean:

the folder where you launched manage.py

your desktop folder

the project root automatically

It means:

The package location of the file containing the import statement.

---

Why Django Uses This

Each app can manage itself.

Example:

encyclopedia/views.py

auctions/views.py

network/views.py

So each app’s urls.py imports its own views cleanly.

---

Memory Trick

If you are inside:

someapp/urls.py

Then:

from . import views

means:

👉 “Look next to me for views.py”

---

Bonus: More Relative Imports

from . import views # same folder
from .. import settings # parent folder

. = current package

.. = parent package

---

Final Takeaway

When Django uses:

from . import views

Python knows the location because it uses the folder/package of the file where that code is written.

So yes — the file’s own package becomes the reference point for the dot.

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