What is the origin in Git?

In Git, "origin" is a shorthand name for the remote repository that a project was originally cloned from. More precisely, it is used instead of that original repository's URL - and thereby makes referencing much easier.

Note that origin is by no means a "magical" name, but just a standard convention. Although it makes sense to leave this convention untouched, you could perfectly rename it without losing any functionality.

In the following example, the URL parameter to the "clone" command becomes the "origin" for the cloned local repository:

git clone https://github.com/gittower/git-crash-course.git

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• Check out the Remote Repositories – Desktop GUI edition chapter in our free online book
• More frequently asked questions about Git & version control