As of PHP 5.3.0, PHP implements a feature called late static bindings which can be used to reference the called class in a context of static inheritance. This feature was named "late static bindings" with an internal perspective in mind. "Late binding" comes from the fact that static:: will no longer be resolved using the class where the method is defined but it will rather be computed using runtime information. It was also called a "static binding" as it can be used for (but is not limited to) static method calls. Static references to the current class like self:: or __CLASS__ are resolved using the class in which the function belongs, as in where it was defined: ]]> &example.outputs; Late static bindings tries to solve that limitation by introducing a keyword that references the class that was initially called at runtime. Basically, a keyword that would allow you to reference B from test() in the previous example. It was decided not to introduce a new keyword but rather use static that was already reserved. ]]> &example.outputs; static:: does not work like $this for static methods! $this-> follows the rules of inheritance while static:: doesn't. This difference is detailed later on this manual page. test(); ?> ]]> &example.outputs; Late static bindings' resolution will stop at a fully resolved static call with no fallback. ]]> &example.outputs; There are lots of different ways to trigger a method call in PHP, like callbacks or magic methods. As late static bindings base their resolution on runtime information, it might give unexpected results in so-called edge cases. foo; ?> ]]> &example.outputs;