Are Bash Variables Case-Sensitive?

When working with Bash scripting or programming, one may wonder whether Bash variables are case-sensitive or not.

In this post, we will explore this question and discuss the behavior of Bash variables in terms of case sensitivity.

What Are Bash Variables?

First, it is important to understand what Bash variables are and how they are used. Bash variables are used to store and manipulate data within a Bash script or program.

They can hold strings, integers, arrays, and other data types, and can be accessed and modified using various operators and commands.

Now, let's answer the question at hand:

Are Bash variables case-sensitive?

The answer is yes, Bash variables are case-sensitive.

This means that variables with different capitalization are considered as separate variables.

For example, if we define two variables in our Bash script:

name="John"
Name="Doe"

These two variables are distinct and hold different values.

If we were to print them out using the echo command:

echo $name
echo $Name

We would see the following output:

John
Doe

Note that the $ symbol is used to reference the variable's value.

It is worth noting that Bash environment variables, which are system-wide variables used to store information about the environment, are also case-sensitive.

However, there are some exceptions to this rule.

For example, Bash has a set of special variables that are not case-sensitive.

These include the $PWD variable, which holds the current working directory, and the $RANDOM variable, which holds a random number.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Bash variables are case-sensitive, meaning that variables with different capitalization are considered as separate variables.

It is important to keep this in mind when working with Bash scripts or programs, as mistyping the variable name could lead to unexpected behavior.