Modern Bash (a.k.a. the bash you get with Linux but not with OS X) even has associative arrays similar to what you would call a dict in Python or a hash in Perl.

    $ declare -A capitals
    $ capitals["Illinois"]="Springfield"
    $ capitals["California"]="Sacramento"
    $ echo ${capitals["California"]}
    Sacramento
    $ echo ${capitals["Illinois"]}
    Springfield
    $ for k in ${!capitals[@]} ; do
    >     echo "The capital of $k is ${capitals[$k]}"
    > done
    The capital of Illinois is Springfield
    The capital of California is Sacramento