Python Programming Language: Its History and Versions

Python is an explicated high-level programming language which is fundamentally utilised for programming. Released in 1991, its design philosophy is based on code readability for clear programming on large as well as small scales.

A Brief History of Python Programming Language

The favourable language for the programmers was first created by Guido Van Rossum who had led the language for 30 years before stepping down in July 2018. Though the idea for creating the language originated in the late 1980s, the work on its implementation could only begin in December 1989. Its principal author – Van Rossum – who was later commemorated with the title of Benevolent Dictator for Life – was a key figure in the development of the programming language right from its implementation to its rise to the peak.

According to him, it all began with his endeavour for a “hobby” programming project which he had undertaken to keep himself occupied throughout the Christmas week in December 1989. He then made up his mind to write a scripting language which would catch the attention of Unix/C hackers. He named the project as “Python” out of his slightly irreverent mood.

After the release of Python 2.0 on October 16, 2000, with a set of new features such as support for Unicode and a cycle-detecting garbage collector, it took more than a month and a half of rigorous testing to release its next version, Python 3.0 (Python 300 or py3k). Python 300 was brought out with major revisions and was characterised by features that were totally distinct from its previous variants.

Python 2 vs. Python 3

Till date, Python is available to programmers in two variants – Python 2.x and Python 3.x. The existing differences between these two versions can easily confuse anyone, especially the beginners. While a majority of programmers use Python 3.x than its earlier form, the latter will continue to receive official updates until 2020. However, those who rely on Python 2.x can take heart from the fact that it may also persist unofficially for several years down the line beyond that timeline.

Initially, there were not many takers for Python 3 due to a handful of its supporting libraries that were owned and managed by third parties. Furthermore, there were more libraries available in support of its version 2.x than version 3.x. However, things have changed over the last couple of years. As the number of libraries that were compatible with version 2.x has undergone a sharp decline, the gap between the two in terms of compatible libraries has been bridged to a greater extent. Going by the volume of usage, Python 3.x is the most widely used Python programming language at the present time.