Starting next month, all new source code repositories created on Git. Hub will be named “main” instead of “master” as part of the company’s effort to remove unnecessary references to slavery and replace them with more inclusive terms.
One of the next things we wanted the answer to was; why did GitHub change its name from master to main?
This time, it’s Git. Hub and the new nomenclature will shift from “master” to “main.” The reason for this change should be obvious, but for those that aren’t sure, it’s to rid the company of any holdover references to slavery and replace them with terms of inclusion that cannot be misconstrued.
Here’s why Git. Hub made the switch from master branch to main branch. Since its inception, the Git DVCS tool’s default branch name was set to master.
, git Hub to replace ‘master’ with ‘main’ starting next month Starting next month, all new source code repositories created on Git. Hub will be named “main” instead of “master” as part of the company’s effort to remove unnecessary references to slavery and replace them with more inclusive terms.
The master branch is no different than any other branch in a cloned Git repo, except that historically it’s been the default name used when the first branch is created. A developer can delete, rename and even re-create the master branch after it’s deleted, just like any other Git branch.
Do you need to shift from Git checkout master to main?
For developers who have been knee-deep in Git and Git. Hub for years, this change will take some time to get used to. Even if you know the change is the right thing to do (spoiler alert: it is), your fingers have been typing git checkout master for years. Now, you’re going to have to shift to git checkout main. “Git” used to it.
Let us dig in! all new Git repositories on Git. Hub will be named “main” instead of “master” starting October 1, 2020.
Can you change the default branch name on GitHub?
Renaming existing branches Many communities, both on Git. Hub and in the wider Git community, are considering renaming the default branch name of their repository from master., git Hub is gradually renaming the default branch of our own repositories from master to main.