diff --git a/src/nanoarrow/common/array.c b/src/nanoarrow/common/array.c
index c6fb1cd9c..e4538955c 100644
--- a/src/nanoarrow/common/array.c
+++ b/src/nanoarrow/common/array.c
@@ -1033,6 +1033,21 @@ static ArrowErrorCode ArrowArrayFinalizeBuffers(struct ArrowArray* array) {
     }
 
     struct ArrowBuffer* buffer = ArrowArrayBuffer(array, i);
+
+    // An offsets buffer holds length + 1 offsets even for an empty array, and the C
+    // data interface carries no buffer sizes, so consumers read offsets[0]
+    // unconditionally. IPC permits a zero-length offsets buffer for an empty array
+    // (nanoarrow's encoder writes one), which would otherwise be exported as a pointer
+    // to no valid bytes (or into a neighbouring part of a shared message body).
+    if (private_data->layout.buffer_type[i] == NANOARROW_BUFFER_TYPE_DATA_OFFSET &&
+        array->length == 0 && buffer->size_bytes == 0) {
+      ArrowBufferReset(buffer);
+      int64_t zero = 0;
+      NANOARROW_RETURN_NOT_OK(ArrowBufferAppend(
+          buffer, &zero, private_data->layout.element_size_bits[i] / 8));
+      continue;
+    }
+
     if (buffer->data == NULL) {
       NANOARROW_RETURN_NOT_OK((ArrowBufferReserve(buffer, 1)));
     }
diff --git a/src/nanoarrow/common/array_test.cc b/src/nanoarrow/common/array_test.cc
index cd9ac88e1..9324cdde6 100644
--- a/src/nanoarrow/common/array_test.cc
+++ b/src/nanoarrow/common/array_test.cc
@@ -383,6 +383,59 @@ TEST(ArrayTest, ArrayTestBuildByBuffer) {
   ArrowArrayRelease(&array);
 }
 
+TEST(ArrayTest, ArrayTestFinishBuildingEmptyArrayOffsets) {
+  // An empty variable-size array still has one offset, and the C data interface carries
+  // no buffer sizes, so consumers read offsets[0] unconditionally. Finishing an empty
+  // array whose offsets buffer holds no bytes must leave exactly one zero offset there,
+  // whether that buffer was never allocated or points at bytes that aren't offsets.
+  struct ArrowError error;
+  struct TestCase {
+    enum ArrowType type;
+    int64_t offset_size;
+    bool garbage_storage;
+  };
+
+  for (const auto& test_case : {TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_STRING, 4, false},
+                                TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_STRING, 4, true},
+                                TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_LARGE_BINARY, 8, false},
+                                TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_LARGE_BINARY, 8, true},
+                                TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_LIST, 4, false},
+                                TestCase{NANOARROW_TYPE_LIST, 4, true}}) {
+    SCOPED_TRACE(std::string(ArrowTypeString(test_case.type)) +
+                 (test_case.garbage_storage ? " with garbage storage" : ""));
+
+    nanoarrow::UniqueSchema schema;
+    ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaInitFromType(schema.get(), test_case.type), NANOARROW_OK);
+    if (test_case.type == NANOARROW_TYPE_LIST) {
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaSetType(schema->children[0], NANOARROW_TYPE_INT32),
+                NANOARROW_OK);
+    }
+
+    nanoarrow::UniqueArray array;
+    ASSERT_EQ(ArrowArrayInitFromSchema(array.get(), schema.get(), &error), NANOARROW_OK)
+        << error.message;
+    struct ArrowBuffer* offsets = ArrowArrayBuffer(array.get(), 1);
+    ASSERT_EQ(offsets->size_bytes, 0);
+    if (test_case.garbage_storage) {
+      // Storage behind a zero-length buffer, as when an empty array's offsets buffer
+      // points into some other part of a larger allocation
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowBufferReserve(offsets, 16), NANOARROW_OK);
+      memset(offsets->data, 0xff, 16);
+    }
+
+    ASSERT_EQ(ArrowArrayFinishBuildingDefault(array.get(), &error), NANOARROW_OK)
+        << error.message;
+    ASSERT_NE(array->buffers[1], nullptr);
+    EXPECT_EQ(ArrowArrayBuffer(array.get(), 1)->size_bytes, test_case.offset_size);
+    int64_t first_offset = -1;
+    memcpy(&first_offset, array->buffers[1], test_case.offset_size);
+    if (test_case.offset_size == 4) {
+      first_offset = static_cast<int32_t>(first_offset);
+    }
+    EXPECT_EQ(first_offset, 0);
+  }
+}
+
 TEST(ArrayTest, ArrayTestExplicitValidationLevel) {
   struct ArrowArray array;
   struct ArrowError error;
diff --git a/src/nanoarrow/ipc/decoder_test.cc b/src/nanoarrow/ipc/decoder_test.cc
index c7ac78ce5..24acafe64 100644
--- a/src/nanoarrow/ipc/decoder_test.cc
+++ b/src/nanoarrow/ipc/decoder_test.cc
@@ -122,6 +122,31 @@ alignas(8) static uint8_t kSimpleRecordBatch[] = {
     0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x01, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x02, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x03, 0x00,
     0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00};
 
+// One row of struct<l: list<string>, i: int32> (l = [[]], i = 0x55555555) as written by
+// nanoarrow's encoder. The empty string array's offsets buffer has zero bytes and the
+// same body offset as i's data buffer.
+alignas(8) static uint8_t kEmptyChildRecordBatch[] = {
+    0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x00, 0x01, 0x00, 0x00, 0x04, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x1a, 0xff,
+    0xff, 0xff, 0x04, 0x00, 0x03, 0x00, 0x10, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x10, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x3c, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0x01, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x84, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x07, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x04, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x03, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x01, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x01, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x0a, 0x00, 0x14, 0x00, 0x04, 0x00,
+    0x0c, 0x00, 0x10, 0x00, 0x0c, 0x00, 0x14, 0x00, 0x04, 0x00, 0x06, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00,
+    0x0c, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
+    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x55, 0x55, 0x55, 0x55, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00};
+
 alignas(8) static uint8_t kSimpleRecordBatchCompressedZstd[] = {
     0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xa0, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x14, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
     0x00, 0x00, 0x0c, 0x00, 0x18, 0x00, 0x06, 0x00, 0x05, 0x00, 0x08, 0x00, 0x0c, 0x00,
@@ -2691,3 +2716,61 @@ INSTANTIATE_TEST_SUITE_P(NanoarrowIpcDecoder, DeltaDictionaryTypeTest,
                                            NANOARROW_TYPE_STRUCT,
                                            NANOARROW_TYPE_FIXED_SIZE_LIST));
 #endif
+
+TEST(NanoarrowIpcTest, NanoarrowIpcDecodeEmptyArrayOffsets) {
+  // An empty array whose offsets buffer holds no bytes must still be decoded with a
+  // readable zero offset, whether or not the decoded array shares the message body
+  struct ArrowError error;
+
+  nanoarrow::UniqueSchema schema;
+  ArrowSchemaInit(schema.get());
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaSetTypeStruct(schema.get(), 2), NANOARROW_OK);
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaSetType(schema->children[0], NANOARROW_TYPE_LIST), NANOARROW_OK);
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaSetType(schema->children[0]->children[0], NANOARROW_TYPE_STRING),
+            NANOARROW_OK);
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSchemaSetType(schema->children[1], NANOARROW_TYPE_INT32), NANOARROW_OK);
+
+  nanoarrow::ipc::UniqueDecoder decoder;
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowIpcDecoderInit(decoder.get()), NANOARROW_OK);
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowIpcDecoderSetSchema(decoder.get(), schema.get(), &error), NANOARROW_OK)
+      << error.message;
+
+  struct ArrowBufferView data;
+  data.data.as_uint8 = kEmptyChildRecordBatch;
+  data.size_bytes = sizeof(kEmptyChildRecordBatch);
+  ASSERT_EQ(ArrowIpcDecoderDecodeHeader(decoder.get(), data, &error), NANOARROW_OK)
+      << error.message;
+  struct ArrowBufferView body;
+  body.data.as_uint8 = kEmptyChildRecordBatch + decoder->header_size_bytes;
+  body.size_bytes = decoder->body_size_bytes;
+
+  for (bool shared : {false, true}) {
+    SCOPED_TRACE(shared ? "shared body" : "borrowed body");
+    nanoarrow::UniqueArray array;
+    if (shared) {
+      nanoarrow::UniqueBuffer body_copy;
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowBufferAppend(body_copy.get(), body.data.data, body.size_bytes),
+                NANOARROW_OK);
+      nanoarrow::UniqueBuffer shared_body;
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowSharedBufferInit(shared_body.get(), body_copy.get()), NANOARROW_OK);
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowIpcDecoderDecodeArrayFromShared(
+                    decoder.get(), shared_body.get(), -1, array.get(),
+                    NANOARROW_VALIDATION_LEVEL_FULL, &error),
+                NANOARROW_OK)
+          << error.message;
+    } else {
+      ASSERT_EQ(ArrowIpcDecoderDecodeArray(decoder.get(), body, -1, array.get(),
+                                           NANOARROW_VALIDATION_LEVEL_FULL, &error),
+                NANOARROW_OK)
+          << error.message;
+    }
+
+    ASSERT_EQ(array->length, 1);
+    struct ArrowArray* strings = array->children[0]->children[0];
+    ASSERT_EQ(strings->length, 0);
+    EXPECT_EQ(ArrowArrayBuffer(strings, 1)->size_bytes, 4);
+    int32_t first_offset = -1;
+    memcpy(&first_offset, strings->buffers[1], sizeof(first_offset));
+    EXPECT_EQ(first_offset, 0);
+  }
+}