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basename and dirname on Linux: Split File Paths in Scripts

· dinesh
basename dirname linux - custom-basename-featured.png

basename and dirname on Linux are heavily searched when writing backup loops, log rotators, and install scripts — they split a full path into directory and filename without brittle sed hacks.

Related: readlink,
test,
find.

basename for filename

Returns the last path component — includes extension.

bashbasename
basename /var/www/html/index.php
basename /data/archive.tar.gz
basename
filename

dirname for directory

Everything before the final slash.

bashdirname
dirname /etc/nginx/sites-available/app.conf
dirname
parent

Strip suffix

basename -s .ext removes a known suffix for stem names.

bashstem
f='/logs/app.2026-03-01.log'; base=$(basename "$f"); stem=$(basename "$f" .log); echo "$base $stem"
basename -s
suffix

Combine in scripts

Create output next to input or preserve relative layout.

TipQuote variables: dir=$(dirname "$path") handles paths with spaces.
mkdir
script

Quick Reference

  • File: basename /path/file
  • Dir: dirname /path/file
  • Stem: basename file .ext

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