-----------
Incorporates changes from the named commits (since the time their
histories diverged from the current branch) into the current
-branch. This command is used by 'git pull' to incorporate changes
+branch. This command is used by `git pull` to incorporate changes
from another repository and can be used by hand to merge changes
from one branch into another.
Assume the following history exists and the current branch is
-"`master`":
+`master`:
------------
A---B---C topic
D---E---F---G master
------------
-Then "`git merge topic`" will replay the changes made on the
+Then `git merge topic` will replay the changes made on the
`topic` branch since it diverged from `master` (i.e., `E`) until
its current commit (`C`) on top of `master`, and record the result
in a new commit along with the names of the two parent commits and
after the merge was started), `git merge --abort` will in some cases be
unable to reconstruct the original (pre-merge) changes. Therefore:
-*Warning*: Running 'git merge' with non-trivial uncommitted changes is
+*Warning*: Running `git merge` with non-trivial uncommitted changes is
discouraged: while possible, it may leave you in a state that is hard to
back out of in the case of a conflict.
If `--log` is specified, a shortlog of the commits being merged
will be appended to the specified message.
+
-The 'git fmt-merge-msg' command can be
-used to give a good default for automated 'git merge'
+The `git fmt-merge-msg` command can be
+used to give a good default for automated `git merge`
invocations. The automated message can include the branch description.
--into-name <branch>::
present, apply it to the worktree.
+
If there were uncommitted worktree changes present when the merge
-started, 'git merge --abort' will in some cases be unable to
+started, `git merge --abort` will in some cases be unable to
reconstruct these changes. It is therefore recommended to always
-commit or stash your changes before running 'git merge'.
+commit or stash your changes before running `git merge`.
+
-'git merge --abort' is equivalent to 'git reset --merge' when
+`git merge --abort` is equivalent to `git reset --merge` when
`MERGE_HEAD` is present unless `MERGE_AUTOSTASH` is also present in
-which case 'git merge --abort' applies the stash entry to the worktree
-whereas 'git reset --merge' will save the stashed changes in the stash
+which case `git merge --abort` applies the stash entry to the worktree
+whereas `git reset --merge` will save the stashed changes in the stash
list.
--quit::
stash entry will be saved to the stash list.
--continue::
- After a 'git merge' stops due to conflicts you can conclude the
- merge by running 'git merge --continue' (see "HOW TO RESOLVE
+ After a `git merge` stops due to conflicts you can conclude the
+ merge by running `git merge --continue` (see "HOW TO RESOLVE
CONFLICTS" section below).
<commit>...::
Before applying outside changes, you should get your own work in
good shape and committed locally, so it will not be clobbered if
there are conflicts. See also linkgit:git-stash[1].
-'git pull' and 'git merge' will stop without doing anything when
-local uncommitted changes overlap with files that 'git pull'/'git
-merge' may need to update.
+`git pull` and `git merge` will stop without doing anything when
+local uncommitted changes overlap with files that `git pull`/`git
+merge` may need to update.
To avoid recording unrelated changes in the merge commit,
-'git pull' and 'git merge' will also abort if there are any changes
+`git pull` and `git merge` will also abort if there are any changes
registered in the index relative to the `HEAD` commit. (Special
narrow exceptions to this rule may exist depending on which merge
strategy is in use, but generally, the index must match HEAD.)
-If all named commits are already ancestors of `HEAD`, 'git merge'
+If all named commits are already ancestors of `HEAD`, `git merge`
will exit early with the message "Already up to date."
FAST-FORWARD MERGE
------------------
Often the current branch head is an ancestor of the named commit.
-This is the most common case especially when invoked from 'git
-pull': you are tracking an upstream repository, you have committed
+This is the most common case especially when invoked from `git
+pull`: you are tracking an upstream repository, you have committed
no local changes, and now you want to update to a newer upstream
revision. In this case, a new commit is not needed to store the
combined history; instead, the `HEAD` (along with the index) is
side wants to say it is hard and you'd prefer to go shopping, while the
other side wants to claim it is easy.
-An alternative style can be used by setting the "merge.conflictStyle"
+An alternative style can be used by setting the `merge.conflictStyle`
configuration variable to either "diff3" or "zdiff3". In "diff3"
style, the above conflict may look like this:
* Resolve the conflicts. Git will mark the conflicts in
the working tree. Edit the files into shape and
- 'git add' them to the index. Use 'git commit' or
- 'git merge --continue' to seal the deal. The latter command
+ `git add` them to the index. Use `git commit` or
+ `git merge --continue` to seal the deal. The latter command
checks whether there is a (interrupted) merge in progress
- before calling 'git commit'.
+ before calling `git commit`.
You can work through the conflict with a number of tools:
branch.<name>.mergeOptions::
Sets default options for merging into branch <name>. The syntax and
- supported options are the same as those of 'git merge', but option
+ supported options are the same as those of `git merge`, but option
values containing whitespace characters are currently not supported.
include::includes/cmd-config-section-rest.txt[]