Programming language is an artificial language created for humans to communicate algorithms to computers easily. Such language often tries to mimic human language (practically always English) but is much MUCH simpler so that a computer can actually analyze it and understand it precisely so it also partially looks like [math](math.md) expressions.
For noobs: a programming language is actually much easier to learn than a foreign natural foreign language, it will typically have <100wordstolearn(outofwhichyou'llmostlyuselike10)andonceyouknowoneprogramminglanguage,learninganotherbecomesabreezebecausethey'reallprettysimilarinbasicconcepts.Thehardpartmaybelearningsomeoftheconcepts.
A programming language is distinct from a general computer language by its purpose to express algorithms and be used for creation of [programs](program.md). There are computer languages that are NOT programming languages (at least in the narrower sense), such as [HTML](html.md), [json](json.md) and so on.
We divide programming languages into different groups. Perhaps the most common divisions is to two groups:
- **compiled** languages: Meant to be transformed by a [compiler](compiler.md) to a [native](native.md) (directly executable) binary program. These languages are more efficient but usually more difficult to program in, less flexible and the compiled programs are non-portable (can't just be copy-pasted to another computer with different [architecture](isa.md) and expected to run). These languages are usually [lower level](low-level), use static and strong [typing](typing.md) and manual [memory management](memory_management.md). Examples: [C](c.md), [C++](cpp.md), [go](go.md), [rust](rust.md), [Haskell](haskell.md) or [Pascal](pascal.md).
- **interpreted** languages: Meant to be interpreted by an [interpreter](interpreter.md) "on-the-go". Basically to run the program you need the interpreter of the language installed on your computer and this interpreter reads the [source code](source_code.md) as it is written and performs what it dictates. These languages are generally less efficient (slower, use more RAM) but also more flexible, easier to program in and [independent of platforms](platform_independent.md). These languages usually [higher-level](high_level.md), use weak and dynamic [typing](typing.md) and automatic [memory management](memory_management.md) ([garbage collection](garbage_collection.md)). Examples: [Python](python.md), [Perl](perl.md), [JavaScript](js.md) and [BASH](bash.md).
Sometimes the distinction here may not be completely clear, for example Python is normally considered an interpreted language but it can also be compiled into [bytecode](bytecode.md). [Java](java.md) is considered more of a compiled language but it doesn't compile to native code (it compiles to bytecode).
We can divide language in many more ways, for example based on their paradigm ([impertaive](imperative.md), [declarative](declarative.md), [object-oriented](oop.md), [functional](functional.md), logical, ...), purpose (general purpose, special purpose), computational strength ([turing complete](turing_complete.md) or weaker), level of abstraction (high, low), typing (strong, weak, dynamic, static) or function evaluation (strict, lazy).
## Nice Languages
*THIS IS NOT A COMPREHENSIVE LIST, I can only include languages that I am familiar with, please add more* ~drummyfish
- [C](c.md): the one and only, the go-to language of the [suckless](suckless.md) community and of compiled languages in general, greatly [future-proof](future_proof.md), uncontested in performance and with nice oldschool [meme](meme.md)-free design, our beloved C
- [Forth](forth.md): beautifully simple stack-based language
- [Lambda calculus](lambda_calculus.md): ultra extremely [minimal](minimalism.md) [mathematical](math.md) [functional](functional.md) language
- [Sigma calculus](sigma_calculus): yes or no? seems like yes
- [Brainfuck](brainfuck.md): However funny and meme this language may look, its simple design is actually pretty beautiful and interpreters are ultra extremely simple to make.
