14.8.2.13 :colnames

The :colnames header argument accepts the values yes, no, or nil for unassigned. The default value is nil.

• nil If an input table looks like it has column names (because its second row is an hline), then the column names will be removed from the table before processing, then reapplied to the results.

            #+tblname: less-cols
            | a |
            |---|
            | b |
            | c |
  
            #+srcname: echo-table-again
            #+begin_src python :var tab=less-cols
              return [[val + '*' for val in row] for row in tab]
            #+end_src
  
            #+results: echo-table-again
            | a  |
            |----|
            | b* |
            | c* |
  

• no No column name pre-processing takes place
• yes Column names are removed and reapplied as with nil even if the table does not “look like” it has column names (i.e. the second row is not an hline)