Typeglobs Assigning a reference to a typeglob makes the two names really point to the same value: *duck = \$foo; # $duck is now 4 $duck += 4; # $foo and $duck are 8 You can assign any type of reference to a typeglob: *git_r_done = \&doit; git_r_done(); # "done" The parens (or a sigil) are needed for function calls since the function was never really defined.