(PHP 4, PHP 5)
get_class — Returns the name of the class of an object
$object = NULL
  ] )
   Gets the name of the class of the given object.
  
objectThe tested object. This parameter may be omitted when inside a class.
   Returns the name of the class of which object is an
   instance. Returns FALSE if object is not an 
   object.
  
   If object is omitted when inside a class, the
   name of that class is returned.
  
   If get_class() is called with anything other than an
   object, an E_WARNING level error is raised.
  
| Version | Description | 
|---|---|
| 5.3.0 | NULLbecame the default value forobject,
        so passingNULLtoobjectnow has the same
        result as not passing any value. | 
| 5.0.0 | The class name is returned in its original notation. | 
| 5.0.0 | The objectparameter is optional if called
        from the object's method. | 
Example #1 Using get_class()
<?php
class foo {
    function name()
    {
        echo "My name is " , get_class($this) , "\n";
    }
}
// create an object
$bar = new foo();
// external call
echo "Its name is " , get_class($bar) , "\n";
// internal call
$bar->name();
?>
The above example will output:
Its name is foo My name is foo
Example #2 Using get_class() in superclass
<?php
abstract class bar {
    public function __construct()
    {
        var_dump(get_class($this));
        var_dump(get_class());
    }
}
class foo extends bar {
}
new foo;
?>
The above example will output:
string(3) "foo" string(3) "bar"