A few days ago, I accidentally opened the famous programming language ranking website TIOBE. In its latest January programming language ranking, I was surprised to see that C language has won the title of “2019 Programming Language of the Year”. This marks the third time C language has received this honor, following wins in 2008 and 2017:
This is quite an achievement for a programming language that has been around for nearly 50 years (C language was born in 1972 at Bell Labs)!
Just when everyone thought Python would become the TIOBE Programming Language of the Year for the second consecutive year, the veteran C language made a comeback, achieving this ranking with a 2.4% annual growth rate!
The reasons for this are understandable. The TIOBE website also explains that it is likely due to the current boom in Internet of Things (IoT) technology and the large number of small smart devices being released today. After all, when C language runs on these small devices that have strict performance requirements, it remains the most outstanding choice.
Annual Programming Language Rankings Over the Years
The table below shows the annual programming language rankings from 2003 to the present:
- C language has won the title of Programming Language of the Year in 2008 and 2017, and again in 2019 after two years.
- The well-regarded C++ language has only won the title once in 2003.
- Java has also won the title twice, in 2005 and 2015.
-
Python is the most impressive! It has won the title three times (2007, 2010, 2018)!
Trends of Various Programming Languages Over the Years
Java: I Am Evergreen
From the blue line representing Java’s trend in the graph, it can be seen that the curve representing Java has always been hovering at a high level. Java’s dominant position is easy to understand, as it is a key contributor to the current prosperous internet ecosystem, with countless web backends, internet services, and mobile development being its territory.
C Language: I Am Steady
From the black line representing C language’s trend in the graph, it can be seen that C language is the only programming language that can always compete with Java for the top position. Since its inception, C language has secured an irreplaceable position due to its ease of use, fine granularity, and high performance. As mentioned earlier, with the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) era, C language’s position remains very stable!
C++: I Am a Bit Tired
C++ is indeed a powerful language, but the burden of the language itself is quite heavy. Keep it up, old brother.
Python: I Will Swim Against the Current
From the green line representing Python’s trend in the graph, especially in the past two years, Python has surged strongly, mainly due to the prosperity of data analysis and mining, artificial intelligence, and machine learning in the scientific field.
PHP: I Am a Bit Anxious Right Now
PHP: I don’t care, I am the best language, no rebuttals accepted!
So at the end of the article, a small survey: What language are you currently learning? (Multiple choices allowed)
Give a [thumbs up], it is the greatest support for the programming sheep