A rule mapping a URL pattern to a dict of routing variables. For instance, if the pattern is “/{controller}/{action}” and the requested URL is “/help/about”, the resulting dict would be:
{"controller": "help", "action": "about"}
Routes does not know what these variables mean; it simply returns them to the application. Pylons would look for a controllers/help.py module containing a HelpController class, and call its about method. Other frameworks may do something different.
A route may have a name, used to identify the route.
A dict of key-value pairs returned by matching. Variables defined in the route path are called path variables; their values will be taken from the URL. Variables defined outside the route path are called default variables; their values are not affected by the URL.
The WSGI.org environment key for routing variables is “wsgiorg.routing_args”. This manual does not use that term because it can be confused with function arguments.