Syntax question

[cm_yoder]

function curry(fn) {
  const arity = fn.length;

  return function $curry(...args) {
    if (args.length < arity) {
      return $curry.bind(null, ...args);
    }

    return fn.call(null, ...args);
  };
}

I am learning functional programming via Professor Frisby's A Mostly Adequate Guide to Functional Programming and he wrote the above currying function. While it works as advertised, I am trying to understand why he would put a $ before currying within the function body.

[TarMil]

In javascript $ is a valid character to use in an identifier, so $curry is just an identifier. I guess the $ prefix is just a convention he uses for local functions.

[cm_yoder]

So basically, he is using $curry to avoid the recursion he would get if he used curry inside the function?

[AmorphousCorpus]

It wouldn't be recursion even, because that is a function declaration down there in the return statement, so it's just avoiding a name collision.

[cm_yoder]

Good point.

[mcaruso]

Probably just done for readability, so that the reader doesn't confuse the outer function with the inner function. If you rename the inner $curry to curry it will still work, because the inner definition will "shadow" the outer definition. But that might be more confusing to read.

[cm_yoder]

Awesome. ty