Variables in template files
If you create a variable in themename_preprocess_page(&amp;$variables), it should could be accessed using the variable name itself. Example

function themename_preprocess_page(&amp;$variables) {
  $variables['my_new_variable'] = "String value";
  $variables['my_new_variable_array'] = array(); // Some renderable array.
}


And then in your template you could simply print the first variable directly

&lt;?php print $my_new_variable; ?&gt;


And render the renderable array using the render() function:

&lt;?php print render($my_new_variable_array); ?&gt;


Note: The array keys become the name of the variable, so please make sure to use a unique name to the keys.