Why do Perl variables need to start with $, %,@ (sigils)?

Question

Why do Perl variables need to start with different characters (sigils)?

• Scalar variables start with $

• Hashes start with %

Answer 1

Not all of them do, some start with % (hashes) or with @ (arrays).

It is a design decision to mark them as variables and also denote their type.

Note that you can have both a $abc and a %abc.

Check out a tutorial on Perl variables.