BASENAME(1)BASENAME(1)NAME
basename, dirname - deliver portions of path names
SYNOPSIS
/usr/bin/basename string [suffix]
/usr/xpg4/bin/basename string [suffix]
dirname string
DESCRIPTION
The basename utility deletes any prefix ending in / and the suffix (if
present in string) from string, and prints the result on the standard
output. It is normally used inside substitution marks (``) within shell
procedures.
/usr/bin
The suffix is a pattern defined on the expr(1) manual page.
/usr/xpg4/bin
The suffix is a string with no special significance attached to any of
the characters it contains.
The dirname utility delivers all but the last level of the path name in
string.
EXAMPLES
Example 1 Setting environment variables
The following example, invoked with the argument /home/sms/per‐
sonal/mail sets the environment variable NAME to the file named mail
and the environment variable MYMAILPATH to the string /home/sms/per‐
sonal:
example% NAME=`basename $HOME/personal/mail`
example% MYMAILPATH=`dirname $HOME/personal/mail`
Example 2 Compiling a file and moving the output
This shell procedure, invoked with the argument /usr/src/bin/cat.c,
compiles the named file and moves the output to cat in the current
directory:
example% cc $1
example% mv a.out `basename $1 .c`
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
See environ(5) for descriptions of the following environment variables
that affect the execution of basename and dirname: LANG, LC_ALL,
LC_CTYPE, LC_MESSAGES, and NLSPATH.
EXIT STATUS
The following exit values are returned:
0
Successful completion.
>0
An error occurred.
SEE ALSOexpr(1), basename(3C), attributes(5), environ(5), standards(5)
Mar 18, 1997 BASENAME(1)