In May 2023 over 90,000 developers responded to StackOverflow annual survey about how they learn and level up, which tools they're using, and which ones they want.
In this post, we will present the top Programming, scripting, and markup languages in 2023, as determined by the results of the StackOverflow Survey.
What're the Top Programming, scripting, and markup languages in 2023 based on StackOverflow Survey?
According to the chart below, out of the 87,585 responses received regarding the most commonly-used programming language.
- JavaScript maintains its position as the dominant programming language for the eleventh consecutive year, showcasing its continued popularity and widespread usage.
- Python has surpassed SQL to claim the third spot, positioning itself as a prominent language, especially among non-professional developers and those learning to code.
- Other technologies that have experienced upward shifts in ranking this year include Bash/Shell, C, Ruby, Perl, and Erlang, each advancing by one position.
- Elixir and Lisp have made significant progress, climbing two positions.
- The standout performer in terms of growth is Lua, an embeddable scripting language, which has surged by an impressive seven positions since 2022. These trends highlight the dynamic nature of programming languages and reflect the evolving preferences and needs of the developer community.
1) Javascript
JavaScript is a high-level programming language primarily used for creating interactive web pages and applications. It allows developers to add dynamic and interactive elements to websites, enabling functionalities such as user input validation, content manipulation, and responsive behavior.
- JavaScript was created by Brendan Eich, who developed the language in just 10 days while working at Netscape Communications Corporation.
- The initial version of JavaScript, known as Mocha, was released in September 1995.
- It was later renamed to LiveScript before finally adopting the name JavaScript to capitalize on the popularity of Java at the time. Since then, JavaScript has evolved significantly and has become one of the most widely used programming languages in the world, powering both client-side and server-side applications.
2) HTML
HTML, which stands for Hypertext Markup Language, is the standard markup language used for creating and structuring web pages. It is the backbone of the World Wide Web and is used to define the structure and layout of content on a web page, including text, images, links, and multimedia elements.
- HTML was developed by Tim Berners-Lee, a British computer scientist, in the early 1990s. Berners-Lee is often referred to as the founder of the World Wide Web. He created HTML as part of his efforts to develop a system for sharing and accessing information over the Internet.
- The first version of HTML, HTML 1.0, was released in 1993. Since then, several versions of HTML have been introduced, each bringing new features and improvements. The latest version, HTML5, was finalized in 2014 and is widely supported by modern web browsers.
3) Python
Python is a high-level programming language known for its simplicity, readability, and versatility. It is widely used for web development, data analysis, artificial intelligence, scientific computing, and many other applications. Python emphasizes code readability and a clean syntax, making it easy to learn and write.
- Python was created by Guido van Rossum, a Dutch programmer, in the late 1980s.
- The development of Python started in December 1989, and the first public release, Python 0.9.0, was released in February 1991. Guido van Rossum led the development of Python as its Benevolent Dictator for Life (BDFL) until he stepped down from the role in July 2018.
- Since its inception, Python has gained widespread popularity due to its simplicity, extensive libraries and frameworks, and strong community support. It has become one of the most popular programming languages and is widely used in various domains, ranging from web development and data analysis to machine learning and automation.
4) SQL
SQL, which stands for Structured Query Language, is used for managing and manipulating relational databases. It provides a standardized way to interact with databases, allowing users to store, retrieve, and manipulate data.
- SQL was developed by Donald D. Chamberlin and Raymond F. Boyce in the early 1970s at IBM Research.
- Their work led to the development of the first relational database management system (RDBMS) called System R. SQL was initially called SEQUEL (Structured English Query Language) and later renamed to SQL.
- It is widely used in various industries and is supported by most database management systems, including Oracle, MySQL, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, and others.
5) TypeScript
TypeScript is a programming language developed and maintained by Microsoft. It is a statically typed superset of JavaScript that adds optional static typing and other advanced features to enhance the development experience and improve code maintainability.
- TypeScript was created by Anders Hejlsberg, who is also known for his work on the development of popular programming languages such as Turbo Pascal, Delphi, and C#. TypeScript was first released to the public in October 2012.
- Anders Hejlsberg and his team at Microsoft designed TypeScript to address some of the limitations and challenges faced by JavaScript developers, especially when working on large-scale applications. By adding static typing and advanced language features, TypeScript provides developers with better tooling, code navigation, error checking, and overall code quality.
- One of the key benefits of TypeScript is that it transpiles to plain JavaScript, which means that TypeScript code can run on any JavaScript runtime. It allows developers to gradually introduce static typing into their existing JavaScript projects and provides improved IDE support and code intelligence.
- Since its release, TypeScript has gained popularity among developers and is widely used in various projects and frameworks. It has become a popular choice for building large-scale web applications, frontend frameworks like Angular, and backend frameworks like Node.js.
6) Bash
Bash, short for "Bourne Again SHell," is a command-line shell and scripting language used primarily in Unix and Unix-like operating systems. It is the default shell for most Linux distributions and macOS.
- Bash was developed by Brian Fox in 1989 while he was working at the Free Software Foundation (FSF). Brian Fox created Bash as a replacement for the original Unix shell called Bourne shell (sh). Bash aimed to provide enhanced functionality and ease of use compared to the Bourne shell.
- Since its inception, Bash has become one of the most widely used shells and scripting languages in the Unix and Linux world. It is known for its flexibility, robustness, and compatibility with existing shell scripts. Bash scripts are used for a variety of purposes, such as system administration, automation tasks, and writing complex command sequences.
7) Java
Java is a general-purpose programming language that is widely used for developing various types of applications, including web, mobile, desktop, and enterprise software. It was designed to be platform-independent, allowing developers to write code once and run it on different operating systems.
- Java was created by James Gosling, Mike Sheridan, and Patrick Naughton at Sun Microsystems (now owned by Oracle Corporation). Development of the language began in 1991, and the first public version, Java 1.0, was released in 1996.
- The founders of Java aimed to develop a language that was simple, reliable, and portable. Java was influenced by several programming languages, including C and C++, but it was designed to be more beginner-friendly and focused on eliminating certain complexities and pitfalls present in other languages.
- One of Java's key features is its "write once, run anywhere" principle, achieved through its Java Virtual Machine (JVM). The JVM allows Java programs to run on any system that has a compatible JVM installed, regardless of the underlying hardware and operating system.
8) C#
C# (pronounced "C sharp") is a modern, object-oriented programming language developed by Microsoft Corporation. It was designed to be simple, powerful, and versatile, with a focus on productivity and ease of use. C# is primarily used for developing Windows applications, web applications, and games using the .NET framework.
- C# was created by Anders Hejlsberg, a Danish software engineer who also played a significant role in the development of the Turbo Pascal and Delphi programming languages. Hejlsberg led a team of developers at Microsoft in the early 2000s to create C# as part of the .NET initiative.
- The initial release of C# was in the year 2000, along with the first version of the .NET framework. Since then, C# has undergone several updates and enhancements, with the most recent version being C# 10, released in 2021 as part of .NET 6.
- C# combines elements of C and C++ languages with features from modern programming languages like Java. It offers a rich set of libraries, tools, and frameworks that make it a popular choice for developing a wide range of applications. C# is known for its strong typing, garbage collection, and support for object-oriented programming principles.
9) C++
C++ is a powerful, general-purpose programming language that is an extension of the C programming language. It was created to provide additional features and capabilities while maintaining compatibility with C. C++ is known for its efficiency, flexibility, and extensive support for object-oriented programming.
- C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup, a Danish computer scientist, in the early 1980s. Stroustrup initially called the language "C with Classes" as it introduced the concept of classes and objects for structured programming.
- In 1983, the name was changed to C++ to reflect the addition of new features and the evolutionary nature of the language.
- The first official release of C++ was in 1985, with the publication of "The C++ Programming Language," which served as a definitive guide to the language. Since then, C++ has undergone several revisions and updates, with the most recent major version being C++17, released in 2017. C++20, released in 2020, introduced further enhancements and features.
- C++ is widely used in various domains, including systems programming, game development, embedded systems, and high-performance applications. It offers low-level control over hardware resources, efficient memory management, and support for both procedural and object-oriented programming paradigms. C++ has a rich set of libraries and frameworks that enable developers to build complex and performance-critical applications.
10) C
C is a general-purpose programming language that was designed to be a low-level language that provides low-level access to memory and hardware, making it suitable for systems programming and developing operating systems.
- It was developed in the early 1970s at Bell Labs by Dennis Ritchie.
- Dennis Ritchie is widely regarded as the primary creator of the C programming language. He worked alongside Ken Thompson, who developed the UNIX operating system, and together they used C to rewrite the UNIX kernel, leading to its widespread adoption.
- The development of C started in 1969 as an evolution of the B programming language, which was also created by Ritchie and Thompson. C improved upon B by adding features like data types, control structures, and a rich set of library functions.
11) PHP
PHP is a popular scripting language used primarily for web development, stood for "Personal Home Page," as it was originally developed to add dynamic functionality to Lerdorf's personal website. Over time, PHP evolved and gained popularity as a server-side scripting language for building dynamic web applications.
- It was created by Rasmus Lerdorf in 1994.
- Rasmus Lerdorf developed the first version of PHP as a set of Perl scripts, which he later rewrote in the C programming language. He released the PHP Tools version 1.0 in 1995, which marked the official launch of PHP as a standalone programming language.
- PHP is widely used by developers worldwide, and it powers a large portion of the web, including popular content management systems like WordPress and e-commerce platforms like Magento. The PHP community continues to actively contribute to the language's development, ensuring its relevance and adaptability in the ever-changing landscape of web development.
12) PowerShell
PowerShell is a cross-platform scripting language and automation framework that was designed specifically for system administration and task automation, providing a powerful and flexible environment for managing and controlling computer systems.
- PowerShell wasdeveloped by Microsoft.
- PowerShell was first released in November 2006 and was initially developed by Microsoft engineer Jeffrey Snover.
- Snover recognized the need for a more advanced and consistent scripting language for managing Windows systems and began working on what would eventually become PowerShell.
- PowerShell is built on the .NET framework and integrates seamlessly with various Microsoft technologies, including Windows, Active Directory, and Azure. It provides a command-line interface (CLI) and a scripting language that enables administrators and developers to automate repetitive tasks, manage system configurations, and perform administrative tasks across multiple machines.
- One of the key features of PowerShell is its extensive use of cmdlets (pronounced "command-lets"), which are small, single-purpose commands that perform specific operations. These cmdlets can be combined and piped together to create powerful automation scripts and workflows.
13) Go
Go, also known as Golang, is a programming language developed by Google. It was created to address the need for a language that combines simplicity, efficiency, and performance for modern software development.
- Go was officially announced by Google in November 2009, and its development was led by a team of engineers at Google, including Robert Griesemer, Rob Pike, and Ken Thompson.
- The initial design and development of Go aimed to overcome the limitations of existing programming languages while providing a modern and productive environment for building software.
- Go was designed with a focus on simplicity, readability, and productivity. It incorporates features from various programming languages, such as static typing, garbage collection, and support for concurrent programming through goroutines and channels.
- Go's syntax is clean and straightforward, making it easy to understand and write code.
14) Rust
Rust is a systems programming language known for its focus on safety, concurrency, and performance.
- It was created by Graydon Hoare and first announced by Mozilla in 2010.
- The official stable release of Rust was announced in May 2015.
- The development of Rust was driven by the need for a language that can provide memory safety guarantees while allowing developers to write efficient and high-performance code.
- Rust was designed to prevent common programming errors, especially those related to memory management, by employing a strong static type system and strict borrowing rules. It enforces ownership and borrowing concepts to ensure that programs are free from data races and memory leaks. This focus on safety does not come at the expense of performance; Rust programs can achieve similar or even better performance compared to languages like C or C++.
15) Kotlin
Kotlin is a statically-typed programming language that runs on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and can also be compiled to JavaScript.
- It was developed by JetBrains, a software development company based in Russia.
- Kotlin was officially announced by JetBrains in July 2011 and released under the Apache 2.0 open-source license in February 2012.
- The development of Kotlin was driven by the need for a modern programming language that addresses the limitations and shortcomings of existing languages, particularly in the context of Java development.
- JetBrains aimed to create a language that is more concise, expressive, and safe while maintaining seamless interoperability with existing Java code and libraries.
- In 2021, JetBrains established the Kotlin Foundation, a non-profit organization, to oversee the future development and governance of the Kotlin programming language.
16) Ruby
Ruby is a dynamic, object-oriented programming language known for its simplicity and readability.
- It was created by Yukihiro Matsumoto, also known as Matz, who is a Japanese computer scientist and programmer.
- Matz started developing Ruby in the mid-1990s, and the first public release of the language, Ruby 0.95, was made available in December 1995.
- Ruby was to design a language that balances functional programming principles with imperative programming constructs, emphasizing programmer productivity and happiness.
- The release of the Ruby on Rails web application framework in 2005 further propelled Ruby's popularity, as it provided a powerful and efficient way to build web applications.
- Ruby is known for its elegant syntax, which focuses on simplicity and expressiveness. It has built-in support for object-oriented programming features, such as classes, inheritance, and polymorphism.
- Additionally, Ruby is a highly flexible language that allows developers to modify and extend its behavior through metaprogramming.
17) Lua
Lua is a lightweight, high-level scripting language designed primarily for embedded systems and game development.
- It was created by a team of computer scientists at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) in Brazil. T
- he original creators of Lua are Roberto Ierusalimschy, Luiz Henrique de Figueiredo, and Waldemar Celes. Lua was first released to the public in 1993.
- Lua was developed with a focus on simplicity, efficiency, and extensibility. It provides a minimalistic and flexible syntax, making it easy to learn and use. The language is known for its small footprint, fast execution speed, and seamless integration with existing codebases written in other languages.
- Lua's versatility and lightweight nature make it particularly well-suited for embedded systems and game development.
- It is often used as a scripting language in video games to provide game logic, AI behavior, and modding capabilities. Lua's design philosophy encourages the embedding of the language within larger applications, allowing developers to extend and customize the functionality of their software.
18) Dart
Dart is a programming language developed by Google. It was designed to be a productive and efficient language for building cross-platform mobile, web, and desktop applications.
- Dart was officially announced by Google in 2011 and has since gained popularity among developers.
- The main founder of Dart is Lars Bak, a Danish computer scientist known for his work on virtual machines.
- Dart is characterized by its simplicity, scalability, and performance. It combines features from various programming languages, making it familiar to developers with different backgrounds.
- It supports both just-in-time (JIT) compilation for fast development cycles and ahead-of-time (AOT) compilation for efficient production deployment.
- Dart is closely associated with the Flutter framework, which is a popular framework for building cross-platform mobile applications.
- Flutter utilizes Dart as its primary programming language, allowing developers to create beautiful and responsive apps for iOS, Android, and other platforms using a single codebase.
19) Assembly
Assembly language is a low-level programming language that is specific to a particular computer architecture. It is considered a symbolic representation of machine code, which allows programmers to write instructions that can be directly executed by the computer's processor.
- Assembly language provides a closer correspondence between the program instructions and the underlying hardware, making it more efficient and flexible than higher-level languages.
- Assembly language does not have a single founder, as it has evolved over time alongside the development of computer hardware.
- The earliest forms of assembly language can be traced back to the early days of computing when programmers directly manipulated the binary instructions of the machine.
- The development of modern assembly language is often attributed to John W. Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert, who were pioneers in the field of electronic computing.
- They designed and built the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), one of the first general-purpose electronic computers, in the 1940s.
20) Swift
Swift is a programming language developed by Apple Inc. It was introduced in 2014 as a modern, safe, and powerful language for iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS app development. Swift is designed to be expressive, concise, and easy to learn, making it accessible to both beginner and experienced programmers.
- Swift was primarily developed by a team of engineers at Apple, led by Chris Lattner.
- The development of Swift started in 2010, and it was officially announced by Apple at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in 2014. Since then, Swift has gained popularity among developers for its simplicity, readability, and robustness.
- The goals of Swift include improving the developer experience, enhancing performance, and promoting safer coding practices.
- It provides modern features such as type inference, optionals, generics, closures, and memory management mechanisms, which contribute to writing more reliable and efficient code.
- With its seamless integration with Apple's frameworks and tools, Swift has become the preferred language for iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS app development.
- It offers compatibility with existing Objective-C code, enabling developers to leverage their previous investments in Apple's ecosystem while adopting Swift gradually.
21) R
R is a programming language and software environment commonly used for statistical computing, data analysis, and graphical representation of data. It provides a wide range of statistical and graphical techniques, making it popular among statisticians, data scientists, and researchers.
- R was initially developed by Ross Ihaka and Robert Gentleman at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, in the early 1990s.
- The development of R was influenced by the S programming language, which was developed at Bell Laboratories by John Chambers and others.
- The first version of R, version 1.0.0, was released in February 2000, marking the official launch of the language to the public.
- R is known for its extensive collection of packages, which are libraries of functions and tools built by the R community to address specific tasks and domains. These packages provide additional statistical models, data manipulation tools, visualization capabilities, and much more, enhancing the versatility and power of R for various data-related applications.
- R's syntax and functionality are designed to facilitate data analysis and statistical modeling. It offers a wide range of built-in functions for descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, regression analysis, time series analysis, and more.
- Additionally, R has strong support for data manipulation, data visualization, and integration with other programming languages and software tools.
22) Visual Basic .Net
VB.NET, also known as Visual Basic .NET, is a programming language and development environment that is part of Microsoft's .NET framework. It is an evolution of the original Visual Basic (VB) language and is designed to provide a modern, object-oriented programming experience.
- VB.NET was developed by Microsoft Corporation. The core team behind VB.NET includes a group of engineers at Microsoft, led by Anders Hejlsberg, who is known for his work on various programming languages, including Turbo Pascal, Delphi, and C#.
- The initial release of VB.NET was included with the release of the .NET framework in February 2002.
- VB.NET is primarily used for developing Windows desktop applications, web applications, and web services. It provides a rich set of libraries and tools for creating user interfaces, working with databases, handling network communication, and more.
23) MATLAB
MATLAB is a high-level programming language and environment designed for numerical computing, data analysis, and visualization. It is widely used in various fields, including engineering, mathematics, finance, and scientific research.
- MATLAB was created by Cleve Moler, a mathematician and computer scientist, in the late 1970s.
- Moler initially developed MATLAB as a programming tool to help his students in numerical analysis courses.
- The name MATLAB stands for "Matrix Laboratory," reflecting the language's built-in support for matrix and vector operations, which are fundamental to many scientific and engineering applications.
- MATLAB provides a wide range of built-in functions and toolboxes for performing tasks such as mathematical computations, data analysis, signal processing, image processing, and more.
24) VBA
VBA stands for Visual Basic for Applications. It is a programming language and development environment that is embedded within Microsoft Office applications, such as Excel, Word, and PowerPoint. VBA allows users to automate tasks, create custom functions, and build interactive applications within the Office suite.
- VBA was developed by Microsoft and was first introduced in 1993 with the release of Office 97.
- It is based on the Visual Basic programming language, which was originally created by Microsoft in the early 1990s.
- VBA was designed specifically for extending the functionality of Office applications and providing a way for users to write macros and automate repetitive tasks.
- The founder of Visual Basic and the original developer of VBA is Alan Cooper. He created the Visual Basic programming language while working at Microsoft and it quickly gained popularity for its simplicity and ease of use. VBA was built upon the foundation of Visual Basic, incorporating its syntax and features tailored for Office automation.
25) Groovy
Groovy is a dynamic programming language that runs on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM). It combines the features of scripting languages like Python and Ruby with the robustness and interoperability of Java. Groovy was designed to enhance productivity and improve the developer experience by providing a concise and expressive syntax.
- Groovy was created by James Strachan and first released in 2003.
- Strachan, along with other developers, wanted to develop a language that would make Java development more enjoyable and efficient.
- James Strachan initially developed Groovy as an open-source project under the Apache Software Foundation.
- Groovy was influenced by languages like Java, Python, Ruby, and Smalltalk, taking the best features from each.
26) Delphi
Delphi is an integrated development environment (IDE) and a programming language originally developed by Borland Software Corporation. Delphi combines object-oriented programming principles with visual design tools, making it well-suited for building Windows applications.
- Delphi was first released in 1995 as Borland Delphi 1.
- It was created by a team led by Anders Hejlsberg, who is known for his work on the Turbo Pascal compiler and later became one of the key architects behind Microsoft's C# language.
- Delphi was initially designed to be a successor to Borland's Turbo Pascal programming language.
- Delphi introduced the concept of rapid application development (RAD), which allowed developers to visually design user interfaces, handle events, and write code using a visual component library. The language used in Delphi is known as the Object Pascal dialect, which is an extension of the Pascal programming language with added support for object-oriented programming concepts.
27) Scala
Scala is a general-purpose programming language that combines object-oriented programming and functional programming paradigms. It was designed to be a scalable language that offers the best of both worlds, allowing developers to write concise and expressive code while leveraging the power of the Java Virtual Machine (JVM).
- Scala was created by Martin Odersky, who is a professor of programming methods at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland.
- Odersky began working on Scala in 2001, with the goal of designing a language that addressed the shortcomings of existing programming languages and provided better support for modern software development practices.
- Scala was publicly released in 2004 as an open-source project, and it quickly gained attention and adoption within the programming community.
- One of the key motivations behind Scala's development was to bridge the gap between object-oriented and functional programming, enabling developers to write code that is concise, modular, and highly expressive.
28) Perl
Perl is a high-level, interpreted programming language known for its flexibility, text processing capabilities, and extensive support for regular expressions.
- It was originally developed by Larry Wall in the late 1980s.
- Larry Wall, a computer programmer and linguist, created Perl as a general-purpose scripting language that could handle a wide range of tasks, including system administration, web development, and data manipulation.
- The first version of Perl, known as Perl 1.0, was released in 1987. It quickly gained popularity among system administrators and developers for its powerful text processing abilities and its ability to handle complex tasks with concise and readable code.
- Perl's syntax and design philosophy emphasize the idea of "There's More Than One Way To Do It" (TMTOWTDI), which promotes flexibility and allows developers to choose the most suitable approach for solving a problem. This characteristic has made Perl a popular choice for tasks involving text processing, string manipulation, and rapid prototyping.
- Perl has evolved through various versions, with Perl 5 being the most widely used and current stable version. Perl 5 introduced significant enhancements and features, including object-oriented programming support, improved regular expressions, and a large number of modules and libraries that extend the language's capabilities.
29) Elixir
Elixir is a functional, concurrent programming language designed for building scalable and maintainable applications.
- It was created by José Valim and first released in 2011.
- José Valim, a Brazilian software developer and former member of the Ruby on Rails core team, developed Elixir as a language that combines the productivity and expressiveness of dynamic languages like Ruby with the scalability and fault-tolerance of functional programming.
- Elixir is built on the Erlang Virtual Machine (BEAM) and leverages the Erlang ecosystem, including the OTP (Open Telecom Platform) framework, known for its robustness and support for distributed and fault-tolerant systems.
- Elixir's combination of functional programming, concurrency, and the scalability of the Erlang ecosystem makes it a compelling choice for developers looking to build highly reliable and performant applications, This combination makes Elixir a powerful language for building concurrent, fault-tolerant, and distributed applications.
- Elixir's syntax is inspired by Ruby, with a focus on readability and developer productivity. It provides functional programming features such as immutable data structures, pattern matching, and higher-order functions, enabling developers to write concise and expressive code.
30) Objective-C
Objective-C is a general-purpose, object-oriented programming language primarily used for developing applications on Apple's macOS and iOS platforms.
- It was created by Brad Cox and Tom Love and first released in the early 1980s.
- Brad Cox, an American computer scientist, and Tom Love, an engineer, developed Objective-C as an extension of the C programming language. They aimed to combine the features of Smalltalk, a dynamic and object-oriented language, with the efficiency and low-level capabilities of C.
- Objective-C gained significant popularity with the rise of Apple's Macintosh computers and later the iOS devices.
- Objective-C's key features include support for object-oriented programming, dynamic runtime, message passing, and reflection.
- Objective-C remained the dominant language for iOS and macOS development until the introduction of Swift in 2014. Swift, developed by Apple, was designed to be more modern, safe, and efficient while maintaining interoperability with Objective-C.
31) Haskell
Haskell is a functional programming language known for its strong type system, purity, and emphasis on mathematical principles.
- It was named after the logician Haskell Curry and was first defined in 1990.
- Haskell was designed by a committee of researchers and academics, including Simon Peyton Jones, Philip Wadler, and others. Their goal was to create a language that combined the elegance and expressiveness of functional programming with strong static typing and rigorous formal semantics.
- The language draws inspiration from various sources, including the lambda calculus, category theory, and other functional programming languages like ML and Miranda. It places a strong emphasis on immutability, referential transparency, and the use of higher-order functions.
- It also provides powerful features for handling concurrency and parallelism, such as lightweight threads and software transactional memory.
32) GDScript
GDScript is a scripting language specifically designed for game development within the Godot game engine.
- It was created by Juan Linietsky, the lead developer of the Godot engine, and was first introduced in 2014 when the engine was open-sourced.
- GDScript is dynamically typed and is heavily influenced by Python, featuring a similar syntax and structure. It is designed to be simple and easy to learn, making it accessible to both experienced developers and beginners.
- The purpose of GDScript is to provide a scripting language that seamlessly integrates with the Godot engine's architecture and API. It allows developers to define game logic, create interactive behaviors, and implement game mechanics using a high-level scripting language.
33) Lisp
LISP (LISt Processing) is a programming language that was first developed in 1958 by John McCarthy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). McCarthy is widely regarded as the founder of LISP and is credited with its creation.
- LISP is known for its unique and distinctive syntax, which is based on parenthesized expressions and uses prefix notation. It was one of the first programming languages to support automatic memory management through garbage collection and is widely recognized as one of the oldest high-level programming languages still in use today.
- LISP was originally designed as a language for artificial intelligence (AI) research and is often associated with symbolic processing and advanced computational tasks. It has a strong emphasis on list processing and provides powerful features for manipulating and transforming data structures.
34) Solidity
Solidity is a programming language specifically designed for developing smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain.
- It was introduced in 2014 by Gavin Wood, Christian Reitwiessner, Alex Beregszaszi, Liana Husikyan, and several other contributors as part of the Ethereum project.
- Gavin Wood, one of the co-founders of Ethereum, played a key role in the development of Solidity. He is a prominent figure in the blockchain space and has made significant contributions to the advancement of decentralized technologies.
- Solidity is a statically-typed, contract-oriented language that allows developers to define and implement smart contracts that can be executed on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
- It is influenced by languages like JavaScript, C++, and Python, and is designed to enable the creation of complex and secure decentralized applications (dApps) on the Ethereum platform.
- Solidity provides features such as inheritance, modularity, and contract interaction, allowing developers to create sophisticated smart contracts with a range of functionalities. It also includes mechanisms for handling data types, access control, events, and exception handling.
35) Julia
Julia is a high-level programming language specifically designed for numerical and scientific computing.
- The development of Julia began in 2009, and the language was officially released to the public in 2012.
- It was created by a team of researchers and developers, including Jeff Bezanson, Stefan Karpinski, Viral Shah, and Alan Edelman.
- Jeff Bezanson, Stefan Karpinski, and Viral Shah are often credited as the primary founders of Julia. They recognized the need for a programming language that combines the high-level abstractions of languages like Python with the performance and expressiveness of lower-level languages like C and Fortran, especially for scientific computing and data analysis.
- Julia is designed to be fast, expressive, and easy to use, with a syntax that is familiar to users of other technical computing languages. It provides a dynamic type system, just-in-time (JIT) compilation, and multiple dispatch, allowing for efficient execution of code and support for generic programming.
- One of the main goals of Julia is to bridge the gap between high-level scripting languages and low-level performance-oriented languages, providing both productivity and performance in a single language. It has gained popularity in the scientific and data analysis communities due to its speed, ease of use, and extensive ecosystem of packages for various domains.
- Julia is an open-source language, and its development is driven by a vibrant community.
36) Erlang
Erlang is a programming language that was created specifically for building concurrent, fault-tolerant, and scalable distributed systems.
- It was developed by Joe Armstrong, Robert Virding, and Mike Williams at the Ericsson Computer Science Laboratory in the late 1980s.
- The development of Erlang started in 1986 when Joe Armstrong joined the Ericsson Computer Science Laboratory. He wanted to create a language that would simplify the development of telecommunication systems, which required high levels of concurrency and fault tolerance. Together with Robert Virding and Mike Williams, they designed and implemented Erlang, drawing inspiration from various programming languages and concurrent programming models.
- Erlang was first released as a commercial product by Ericsson in 1998. It quickly gained popularity in the telecommunications industry, as it proved to be highly effective in building reliable and fault-tolerant systems.
- In 1998, Ericsson released the first open-source version of Erlang, making it available to the wider developer community.
- Erlang is known for its unique features that enable concurrent programming, such as lightweight processes, message passing, and built-in support for fault tolerance and distribution. It has been widely adopted in the telecommunications industry, as well as in other domains that require highly concurrent and fault-tolerant systems, such as real-time systems, distributed systems, and scalable web applications.
37) F#
F# is a programming language that is a strongly typed, functional-first language that combines functional programming with the object-oriented and imperative programming paradigms.
- It was developed by Don Syme and a team of researchers at Microsoft Research.
- The development of F# started in the early 2000s when Don Syme and his team at Microsoft Research began working on a new language that would be suitable for functional programming on the .NET platform. They aimed to create a language that would be expressive, efficient, and interoperable with existing .NET languages.
- F# was officially announced by Microsoft in 2005, and the first version, F# 1.0, was released as a part of Visual Studio 2005.
- F# was heavily influenced by other functional programming languages such as ML (MetaLanguage) and OCaml. It adopted many of the core features and syntax of these languages while also integrating with the .NET platform and leveraging its rich ecosystem of libraries and tools.
- F# has been used in various domains, including finance, data analysis, scientific computing, and web development. It is known for its concise and expressive syntax, strong type inference capabilities, and seamless interoperability with other .NET languages.
- F# is an open-source language, and its development is now overseen by the F# Software Foundation, a community-driven organization that promotes the adoption and advancement of F# as a cross-platform programming language.
38) Fortran
Fortran, short for "Formula Translation," is a programming language designed for scientific and numerical computing. It was one of the earliest high-level programming languages and has been widely used in the field of scientific computing, particularly in areas such as computational physics, weather forecasting, and engineering simulations.
- Fortran was developed by a team of programmers led by John W. Backus at IBM (International Business Machines Corporation) in the 1950s.
- The first version, known as Fortran I, was released in 1957.
- It was designed to address the need for a programming language that could efficiently handle complex mathematical calculations and scientific computations.
39) Prolog
Prolog is a logic programming language used for artificial intelligence and computational linguistics applications. It is based on formal logic and is known for its declarative and rule-based programming style. Prolog stands for "Programming in Logic."
- Prolog was developed in the early 1970s by a group of researchers led by Alain Colmerauer and Robert Kowalski. The initial development took place at the University of Aix-Marseille in France. The language was further refined and popularized by the work of Colmerauer and his colleagues, who developed the first Prolog interpreter known as "Prolog-I" in 1972.
- The primary motivation behind the development of Prolog was to create a programming language that could handle natural language processing and provide an efficient mechanism for automated reasoning.
- Prolog's syntax and execution model are rooted in formal logic, particularly in the field of first-order predicate calculus.
40) Zig
Zig is a programming language designed for robustness, performance, and clarity. It focuses on providing low-level control and optimization while maintaining a friendly and modern syntax. Zig is primarily used for systems programming and is designed to be a viable alternative to languages like C and C++.
- Zig was created by Andrew Kelley, who is the founder and primary developer of the language.
- Kelley began working on Zig in 2015 and announced the language to the public in 2016.
- The design goals of Zig include safety, simplicity, and performance.
- Zig emphasizes compile-time checks, such as null safety and memory management, to help eliminate common programming errors. It also provides modern language features like algebraic data types, pattern matching, and generics.
- Zig is an open-source project, and its development is driven by the contributions and feedback from the community.
- The language has gained popularity among developers who are interested in low-level programming, embedded systems, game development, and other areas where control over hardware and performance is crucial.
41) Ada
Ada is a high-level programming language designed for software engineering and development of reliable and efficient software systems.
- It was developed by a team led by Jean Ichbiah at CII Honeywell Bull in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
- The language was named after Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, who is often recognized as the world's first programmer for her work on Charles Babbage's analytical engine in the 19th century.
- Ada was created in response to the need for a language that could provide reliable and efficient software for high-integrity systems, such as those used in defense, aviation, and other critical applications.
- It was designed to address the challenges of large-scale software development, emphasizing safety, reliability, and maintainability.
42) OCaml
OCaml, short for Objective Caml, is a general-purpose programming language that combines functional programming with imperative and object-oriented programming paradigms.
- It was initially created by a team led by Xavier Leroy in the late 1990s as an extension and successor to the Caml programming language.
- The first stable version of OCaml, OCaml 1.0, was released in 1996.
- The language was designed to be expressive, efficient, and suitable for both teaching and industrial application development.
- OCaml inherits many features from its predecessor, Caml, including a strong static type system, pattern matching, type inference, and a powerful module system. It also introduced new features such as polymorphic variants, first-class modules, and support for imperative programming.
43) Apex
Apex is a programming language specifically designed for building applications on the Salesforce platform. It is a strongly-typed, object-oriented language that allows developers to extend and customize the functionality of Salesforce's cloud-based services.
- Apex was developed by Salesforce.com, a leading cloud-based software company founded by Marc Benioff, Parker Harris, Dave Moellenhoff, and Frank Dominguez in 1999.
- Salesforce.com initially focused on providing customer relationship management (CRM) solutions, and Apex was created to enable developers to build custom applications and automate business processes within the Salesforce environment.
- Apex draws inspiration from Java and other similar languages, making it familiar to developers with experience in those languages.
- It supports features such as classes, interfaces, inheritance, exception handling, and database integration. Apex code runs on the Salesforce platform, allowing it to interact seamlessly with Salesforce data and services.
44) Cobol
COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language) is a high-level programming language that was specifically designed for business applications. It was one of the earliest programming languages developed and has been widely used in the business and financial sectors.
- COBOL was developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s by a team led by Grace Hopper.
- Grace Hopper, along with her team at IBM, is often credited as the founder of COBOL.
- The language was designed to be English-like and easy to understand for non-technical business users. Its goal was to enable business professionals to write and understand computer programs without having extensive programming knowledge.
- COBOL was widely used in mainframe systems and played a significant role in the development of early business applications.
45) SAS
SAS (Statistical Analysis System) is a software suite used for advanced analytics, business intelligence, and data management. It provides a wide range of tools and capabilities for data analysis, statistical modeling, data visualization, and predictive analytics.
- SAS was developed in the late 1960s at North Carolina State University by a team of statisticians led by Anthony James Barr.
- SAS was developed as a project to analyze agricultural data, but its capabilities expanded over time to cater to various industries and domains.
- It used to build a robust and flexible software solution that could handle large datasets, perform complex statistical calculations, and provide users with a user-friendly interface for data analysis.
46) Crystal
Crystal is a statically-typed programming language that combines the syntax and convenience of Ruby with the performance and type safety of languages like C or C++. It is designed to be expressive, readable, and efficient, making it suitable for a wide range of applications, including web development, system programming, and scripting.
- Crystal was created by Ary Borenszweig and Juan Wajnerman.
- The initial work on Crystal started in 2011, and the language was publicly released in June 2014.
- Borenszweig and Wajnerman aimed to develop a language that would provide a similar programming experience to Ruby while offering better performance through static type checking and compilation to native machine code.
47) Nim
Nim is a statically-typed programming language known for its efficiency, expressive syntax, and powerful metaprogramming capabilities. It aims to combine high-performance execution with a clean and readable syntax, making it suitable for a wide range of applications, including system programming, web development, and scripting.
- Initially called "Nimrod," Nim was created by Andreas Rumpf, who started working on the language in 2008.
- One of the key features of Nim is its metaprogramming capabilities, which allow developers to generate code and perform compile-time computations. This enables powerful code generation and customization, making Nim a flexible language for building highly optimized and tailored solutions.
- Nim's syntax is influenced by various programming languages, including Python, Pascal, and Ada.
48) APL
APL (A Programming Language) is a high-level, array-oriented programming language that emphasizes concise and expressive code. It was designed to manipulate and process arrays of data efficiently. APL is known for its extensive set of built-in functions and operators, which enable complex operations to be expressed concisely.
- APL was created by Kenneth E. Iverson, a Canadian computer scientist and mathematician. He developed the language in the late 1950s and early 1960s while working at IBM. APL was initially used for mathematical and scientific computing, as it provided a powerful tool for working with arrays and mathematical operations.
- Iverson's goal in creating APL was to provide a language that could express complex algorithms and mathematical concepts in a natural and concise way. He wanted to bridge the gap between mathematical notation and computer programming, allowing mathematicians and scientists to directly translate their ideas into executable code.
49) Flow
Flow is a static type checker for JavaScript, developed by Facebook. It aims to add static typing capabilities to JavaScript, helping developers catch type-related errors and improve code quality.
- Flow was initially released as an open-source project by Facebook in 2014.
- The founder of Flow is Jordan Walke, a software engineer at Facebook who is also known for his work on React, a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces.
- It was designed to address the challenges of working with dynamically-typed JavaScript, where type-related errors can often go unnoticed until runtime.
- Flow allows developers to catch potential errors early during development and provides better tooling and editor support for code analysis.
- While Flow gained popularity in the JavaScript community, it faced competition from other static type checkers such as TypeScript. In fact, TypeScript, developed by Microsoft, became the dominant choice for adding static typing to JavaScript projects. As a result, Facebook announced in 2020 that it would gradually shift its focus from Flow to TypeScript within its own projects.
50) Raku
Raku, formerly known as Perl 6, is a programming language that aims to be a successor to the Perl programming language. It was designed to address various limitations and challenges faced by Perl 5 while incorporating new features and improvements.
- The development of Raku started in the early 2000s as a separate project from Perl 5.
- Raku has its own syntax and semantics, distinct from Perl 5, and it incorporates concepts from multiple programming paradigms, including functional programming, object-oriented programming, and procedural programming. It emphasizes readability, expressiveness, and flexibility, aiming to provide a powerful and versatile programming language for various use cases.
Conclusion
It is worth noting that the popularity and usage of programming languages can vary depending on the context, industry, and specific project requirements. Developers often choose languages based on factors such as performance, community support, ecosystem, and ease of use.
As technology evolves, new languages will continue to emerge, offering innovative solutions and pushing the boundaries of what is possible in software development. Developers should stay updated with the evolving trends and assess the suitability of programming languages based on their unique needs and project requirements.
Ref: StackOverflow Survey, and the official site for each language!
