airbnb/lottie-android · error · JsonDataException

Expected a name but was {} at path {}

Error message

Expected a name but was {} at path {}

What it means

JsonUtf8Reader.nextName() peeks the next token expecting one of the name token types (unquoted, double-quoted, single-quoted, or buffered name). If the token is not a name — e.g., it's a value, closing bracket, or EOF — it throws JsonDataException. This fires when the parser is inside an object and expects a property key but encounters a value or structural token instead.

Source

Thrown at lottie/src/main/java/com/airbnb/lottie/parser/moshi/JsonUtf8Reader.java:532

    }
  }

  @Override public String nextName() throws IOException {
    int p = peeked;
    if (p == PEEKED_NONE) {
      p = doPeek();
    }
    String result;
    if (p == PEEKED_UNQUOTED_NAME) {
      result = nextUnquotedValue();
    } else if (p == PEEKED_DOUBLE_QUOTED_NAME) {
      result = nextQuotedValue(DOUBLE_QUOTE_OR_SLASH);
    } else if (p == PEEKED_SINGLE_QUOTED_NAME) {
      result = nextQuotedValue(SINGLE_QUOTE_OR_SLASH);
    } else if (p == PEEKED_BUFFERED_NAME) {
      result = peekedString;
    } else {
      throw new JsonDataException("Expected a name but was " + peek() + " at path " + getPath());
    }
    peeked = PEEKED_NONE;
    pathNames[stackSize - 1] = result;
    return result;
  }

  @Override public int selectName(Options options) throws IOException {
    int p = peeked;
    if (p == PEEKED_NONE) {
      p = doPeek();
    }
    if (p < PEEKED_SINGLE_QUOTED_NAME || p > PEEKED_BUFFERED_NAME) {
      return -1;
    }
    if (p == PEEKED_BUFFERED_NAME) {
      return findName(peekedString, options);
    }

View on GitHub (pinned to 05ea92e903)

Solutions

1. Use the exception path to locate the malformed object in the JSON and fix the property key-value structure.
2. Run the JSON through a validator/linter.
3. Re-export or re-download the animation file.

LottieTask<LottieComposition> task = LottieCompositionFactory.fromAsset(context, name);
task.addListener(result -> { /* success */ })
     .addFailureListener(e -> { /* JSON property name error */ });

When it happens

Trigger: Inside a JSON object, the parser expects a property name but finds a value, closing brace, comma, or EOF. This happens when object key-value pairs are malformed — e.g., a missing key before a value, or an extra value after the last property.

Common situations: Corrupted or hand-edited Lottie JSON with object key-value errors; truncated file; malformed export from a non-standard tool.

Related errors

• Expected BEGIN_ARRAY but was {} at path {}
• Expected END_ARRAY but was {} at path {}
• Expected BEGIN_OBJECT but was {} at path {}
• Expected END_OBJECT but was {} at path {}
• Expected a string but was {} at path {}

AI-assisted analysis of airbnb/lottie-android@05ea92e903 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/8ef27153d488c0eb. Report an issue: GitHub.