Returns an array of references from your Git database that match the supplied name. The `:ref` in the URL must be formatted as `heads/<branch name>` for branches and `tags/<tag name>` for tags. If the `:ref` doesn't exist in the repository, but existing refs start with `:ref`, they will be returned as an array. When you use this endpoint without providing a `:ref`, it will return an array of all the references from your Git database, including notes and stashes if they exist on the server. Anything in the namespace is returned, not just `heads` and `tags`. > [!NOTE] > You need to explicitly [request a pull request](https://docs.github.com/rest/pulls/pulls#get-a-pull-request) to trigger a test merge commit, which checks the mergeability of pull requests. For more information, see "[Checking mergeability of pull requests](https://docs.github.com/rest/guides/getting-started-with-the-git-database-api#checking-mergeability-of-pull-requests)". If you request matching references for a branch named `feature` but the branch `feature` doesn't exist, the response can still include other matching head refs that start with the word `feature`, such as `featureA` and `featureB`.