How Programming Languages Got Their Names

Post by mjhay » Thu, Feb 08, 2024, 5:49 PM UTC

behnamoh wrote: post #80

p4bl0 wrote: post #9

This list is disappointingly short. Here's a few more of the top of my head, feel free to expand the list! : C: a successor to B, itself derived from BCPL. C++: increments over C. D: a successor to C. LISP: LISt Processor. FORTRAN: FORmula TRANslator. ALGOL: ALGorithmic Language. Prolog: PROgrammation LOGique (logic programming in French). PHP: initially PHP/FI for "Personal Home Page Form Interpreter", later rebrand…

Wolfram: Named after Stephen Wolfram, by Stephen Wolfram Does anyone else think it's a bit too much to name something after yourself? Even in math and physics, scientists often don't name it after themselves—their colleagues do it to give credit where it's due (e.g., Colomb's law, Planck's constant, etc.)

Post by fluoridation » Thu, Feb 08, 2024, 5:56 PM UTC

Y_Y wrote: post #16

BerislavLopac wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is also C#, where # represents a duplication of "++", on top of each other. Technically, the # is not the sign for the musical sharp key (♯), but "C sharp" sounds better than "C hash", "C pound" or "C octothorp". :) Edit: On an unrelated note, TIL that the sign used on telephone keys is also not #, but ⌗ -- a.k.a. the "Viewdata square" [0]. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viewdata#Keypad_symbols:_the_s...

I assumed they just meant to comment out everything that came after C.

Post by bch » Thu, Feb 08, 2024, 6:03 PM UTC

refset wrote: post #46

p4bl0 wrote: post #9

This list is disappointingly short. Here's a few more of the top of my head, feel free to expand the list! : C: a successor to B, itself derived from BCPL. C++: increments over C. D: a successor to C. LISP: LISt Processor. FORTRAN: FORmula TRANslator. ALGOL: ALGorithmic Language. Prolog: PROgrammation LOGique (logic programming in French). PHP: initially PHP/FI for "Personal Home Page Form Interpreter", later rebrand…

According to Wikipedia: > The original name SEQUEL, which is widely regarded as a pun on QUEL, the query language of Ingres, was later changed to SQL (dropping the vowels) because "SEQUEL" was a trademark of the UK-based Hawker Siddeley Dynamics Engineering Limited company. The label SQL later became the acronym for Structured Query Language.

Post by hcs » Thu, Feb 08, 2024, 6:13 PM UTC

jhbadger wrote: post #78

tromp wrote: post #28

Haskell Curry has the honor of having two programming languages named after him: Haskell and Curry [1]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curry_(programming_language)

It is weird that Haskell (programming language) is named after Curry's first name though. That isn't generally how you name things (other than people). About the only other thing I think of that works that way is America, named after the explorer Amerigo Vespucci. "Vespuccia" would have been a more logical choice.

Post by CalChris » Thu, Feb 08, 2024, 6:14 PM UTC

hgo wrote: post #2

I can't shake a vague memory that Java was named in an early brainstorming session with post-it notes on walls with tons of good and bad names, where eventually Java remained as the winner. I believe I've heard about this as a prime example of good brain storming methods from the early days when it wasn't at all obvious. Does anybody know if this is right or if I'm confusing it with something else?