instanceof equivalent for a string-represented classname

Question

I'm looking for a functionality, in the example below called "theFunctionILookFor", that will make the code work.

$myClassName = "someName";
$parentOrInterfaceName = "someParent";
if (theFunctionILookFor($myClassName)) {
    echo "is parent";
}

Edit: I try to avoid instantiating the class just to perform this check. I would like to be able to pass 2 string parameters to the checking function

Answer 1

Looks like this is my answer: is_subclass_of

It can accept both parameters as strings

http://php.net/manual/en/function.is-subclass-of.php

Answer 2

Try is_subclass_of(). It can accept both parameters as strings. http://php.net/manual/en/function.is-subclass-of.php

Answer 3

Using the Reflection API, you can construct a ReflectionClass object using the name of the class as well as an object.

Answer 4

You might use this?

http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.get-parent-class.php

From the page:

get_parent_class

(PHP 4, PHP 5, PHP 7)
get_parent_class — Retrieves the parent class name for object or class

Description

string get_parent_class ([ mixed $object ] )

Retrieves the parent class name for object or class.