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General Discussion

Vic Mercier
Vic Mercier
3,276 Points
Posted by Vic Mercier
Vic Mercier
3,276 Points

How programming languages are made?

I always have been wondering to myself how programming language are made!

1 Answer

Michael Hulet
Michael Hulet
47,912 Points
Michael Hulet
Michael Hulet
47,912 Points

Programming languages are implemented by making one of 2 types of programs: a compiler or an interpreter. They both accomplish the same thing, but a compiler translates the code of the language you write to code that a computer can read before your program runs (it outputs the binary file of your program), but an interpreter does it while your program runs. To make a programming language, you should design what you want it to look like, what features it should have, and exactly how you want it to work, and then you should implement a compiler and/or interpreter that can read your language. There's lots of resources online about how to do that (in fact, it's usually taught in a college setting), but if you're new to the concept, this is definitely my favorite resource: The Super Tiny Compiler. That's a very lightweight LISP-to-C compiler implemented in thoroughly commented, easy to read JavaScript, and it walks you through exactly how everything works