# Combining XML With the + Operator

You can use the + operator to combine XML elements. This can be useful when you want to create a new list of XML elements from XML elements returned from another expression. You can also use the + operator to add new XML to existing XML.

    /* Declare an XML variable with a literal XML value. */
    var xmlEmployees =
        <employees>
            <employee>
                <firstname>John</firstname>
                <lastname>Walton</lastname>
                <age>25</age>
            </employee>
            <employee>
                <firstname>Sue</firstname>
                <lastname>Day</lastname>
                <age>32</age>
            </employee>
            <employee>
                <firstname>Gladys</firstname>
                <lastname>Cravits</lastname>
                <age>53</age>
            </employee>
    </employees>;

    /* Collect the first and third <employee> nodes into a new XML snippet. */
    var xmlSelectedEmployees = xmlEmployees..employee[0] + xmlEmployees..employee[2];

    /* Add a new <employee> element to the list. */
    var xmlCompleteList = xmlSelectedEmployees + <employee><firstname>Bruce</firstname><lastname>Wayne</lastname><age>36</age></employee>;

You might also find the appendChild function useful when combining XML elements. For more information, see appendChild function.

Related Topics

appendChild function