make array index 1 instead of index 0 based

If you really want to do this, you can create a class that wraps a list, and implement __getitem__ and __setitem__ to be one based. For example:

def __getitem__(self, index):
  return self.list[index-1]

def __setitem__(self, index, value):
  self.list[index-1] = value

However, to get the complete range of flexibility of Python lists, you would have to implement support for slicing, deleting, etc. If you just want a simple view of the list, one item at a time, this should do it for you.'

See Python Documentation for Data Model for more information on creating custom classes that act like sequences or mappings.

You can use enumerate() method

a = ['a', 'c', 'v', 's']
for i,v in enumerate(a, 1):
    print i, v

1 a
2 c
3 v
4 s

+1 to Max. Here's something else you could try:

Just add a None at index 0 of your list. This should get you the functionality. You'll just need to remember to snip out the leading None when you pass your list off to MATLAB