You forgot to specify a LIST on the left hand side:

perl -e '$var="11/22";($x,$y) = split("/",$var,);print "x is $x and y 
+is $y\n";'
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jeffa

    A flute with no holes is not a flute . . .
a doughnut with no holes is a danish.
                                - Basho,
                                  famous philosopher