---
title: Variables in Bash Alias
description: Using variables in bash aliases is easy to do, here's how
date: 2020-12-19
tags: Bash, alias
source: https://brianchildress.co/blog/variables-in-bash-alias
---

# Variables in Bash Alias

I'm a firm believer that we only have so many keys strokes in our lifetime, I save as many as I can with [bash aliases](https://tldp.org/LDP/abs/html/aliases.html). A simple bash alias can improve your efficiency at the keyboard many times over. 

Using variables in your bash aliases helps to pass a value into your alias at specified locations and reuse the value many times. Ya know, like variables do.

Here's an example bash alias that I like to create a (nested) directory AND `cd` into that directory:

```bash
alias mkdir='_mkdir() { mkdir -p "$1" && cd "$1" ;}; _mkdir'
```

The trick is to define a function, here I call it _\_mkdir_, and then exporting that function all as part of the alias. We enclose our variable reference in double quotation marks, "$1".

To use this alias, in the terminal type: `mkdir <folder/with/optional/nesting>` and be immediately navigated to your new directory. Of course variables combined with bash aliases have a lot of interesting uses.