How Python Was Made?
How Python Was Made
Guido Van Rossum was born in the Netherlands in 1956. After receiving an electronics kit for his 10th birthday, he began constructing circuits as a hobby. From a young age, he was fascinated by mathematics and technology. He would later attend the University of Amsterdam, earning a Master’s in Mathematics and Computer Science.
While working as a software engineer at CWI, Van Rossum noticed that coding was a complicated and time-consuming process. He sought to create a language that was simple yet complex, emphasizing readability. In the late 1980s, while at CWI, Van Rossum began developing what we now know as Python.
In February 1991, Van Rossum published the code (labeled version 0.9.0) to alt.sources. Even in its early stages, Python boasted features like exception handling, classes with inheritance, functions, and core data types. The ABC programming language, which Van Rossum had worked with for many years, significantly influenced Python’s development. ABC programs were often half or even a quarter the size of equivalent programs written in C or Pascal.
In 1999, Van Rossum submitted a funding proposal to DARPA titled “Computer Programming for Everybody,” where he outlined his goals to make Python as understandable as plain English, open source, intuitive, and as powerful as major languages like Pascal or C.
Today, Python is one of the most popular and easy-to-learn languages. It has opened many new pathways for developers who might have never considered coding due to its complexity. Python’s simplicity and power have made it a staple in the coding world.