TypeScript array to string literal type

Question

Update for TypeScript 3.0 :

With the use of generic rest parameters, there is a way to correctly infer string[] as a literal tuple type and then get the union type of the literals.

It goes like this:

const tuple = <T extends string[]>(...args: T) => args;
const furniture = tuple('chair', 'table', 'lamp');
type Furniture = typeof furniture[number];

More about generic rest parameters

Update for TypeScript 3.4:

TypeScript version 3.4 has introduced so-called const contexts, which is a way to declare a tuple type as immutable and get the narrow literal type directly (without the need to call a function like shown above).

With this new syntax, we get this nice concise solution:

const furniture = ['chair', 'table', 'lamp'] as const;
type Furniture = typeof furniture[number];

More about the new const contexts is found in this PR as well as in the release notes.

This answer is out of date, see answer above.

The best available workaround:

const furnitureObj = { chair: 1, table: 1, lamp: 1 };
type Furniture = keyof typeof furnitureObj;
const furniture = Object.keys(furnitureObj) as Furniture[];

Ideally we could do this:

const furniture = ['chair', 'table', 'lamp'];
type Furniture = typeof furniture[number];

Unfortunately, today furniture is inferred as string[], which means Furniture is now also a string.

We can enforce the typing as a literal with a manual annotation, but it brings back the duplication:

const furniture = ["chair", "table", "lamp"] as ["chair", "table", "lamp"];
type Furniture = typeof furniture[number];

TypeScript issue #10195 tracks the ability to hint to TypeScript that the list should be inferred as a static tuple and not string[], so maybe in the future this will be possible.