What is hashes (%) in Perl?

In Perl, hashes (also known as associative arrays) are a data structure that allows you to store data in key-value pairs. Each key is unique, and you can use it to access its corresponding value, making it ideal for cases where you need quick lookups and dynamic data storage.

Hashes are declared using the percent sign (%) and can be initialized with a list of key-value pairs. You can access, add, or modify elements in a hash using keys.

# Example of a hash in Perl
%fruit = (
    "apple" => "red",
    "banana" => "yellow",
    "grape" => "purple"
);

# Accessing hash values
print "The color of an apple is: $fruit{\"apple\"}\n"; # Output: The color of an apple is: red