Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

equals
     
         "=", {ASCII} character 61.
     
        Common names: {ITU-T}: equals; gets; takes.  Rare:
        quadrathorpe; {INTERCAL}: half-mesh.
     
        Equals is used in many languages as the {assignment} operator
        though earlier languages used ":=" ("becomes equal to") to
        avoid upsetting mathematicians with statements such as "x =
        x+1".  It is also used in compounds such as "<=", ">=", "==",
        "/=", "!=" for various comparison operators and in {C}'s "+=",
        "*=" etc. which mimic the {primitive} operations of
        {two-address code}.
     
        (1995-03-29)