Python is a popular, high-level programming language that was first released in 1991 by Guido van Rossum. The language was designed to be easy to read and write, making it a great choice for beginners and experienced programmers alike.
Python was named after the British comedy group Monty Python, of which van Rossum was a fan. The language's first version, Python 0.9.0, was released on February 20, 1991.
Over the years, Python has grown in popularity and is now one of the most widely-used programming languages in the world. It is used for a wide range of tasks, including web development, scientific computing, data analysis, artificial intelligence, and more.
Python has undergone several major releases throughout its history. Python 1.0 was released in 1994, followed by Python 2.0 in 2000. Python 3.0 was released in 2008, and it introduced several major changes to the language, including the removal of some features that were deemed to be deprecated or outdated.
Python's popularity began to rise in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The language was well-suited for web development, and it quickly became a popular choice for building websites and web applications. Python's ease of use and a large library of modules made it an ideal choice for many developers.
In recent years, Python's popularity has continued to grow, particularly in the areas of data science and machine learning. The language's powerful data analysis and visualization libraries, such as NumPy and pandas, have made it a popular choice for data scientists and researchers.
Guido van Rossum is a Dutch programmer who is best known as the creator of the Python programming language. He began working on Python in December 1989 while working at the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) in the Netherlands.
Van Rossum initially intended Python to be a successor to the ABC programming language, which he had also worked on at CWI. However, Python quickly evolved into its own language, with many unique features and capabilities.
After releasing Python 1.0 in 1994, van Rossum continued to work on the language, releasing several new versions over the next few years. He also served as the "Benevolent Dictator for Life" (BDFL) of the Python community, overseeing the development of the language and its community.
In December 2012, van Rossum stepped down as the BDFL and handed over the role to a five-member steering council. He also left his position at Dropbox and started working at Google. He continues to be active in the Python community and is still involved in the development of the language.