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History of Python
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<p>The <a href="/facts/Programming_language/cWTYbgWa">programming language</a> <a href="/facts/Python_/YbuGqofa">Python</a> was conceived in the late 1980s, and its implementation was started in December 1989 by <a href="/facts/Guido_van_Rossum/xADcJVjl">Guido van Rossum</a> at <a href="/facts/Centrum_Wiskunde_%2526_Informatica/GkPrQHzL">CWI</a> in <a href="/facts/The_Netherlands/y8xn5stT">the Netherlands</a> as a successor to <a href="/facts/ABC_/lgYVS5y4">ABC</a> capable of <a href="/facts/Exception_handling/VrJxgb9r">exception handling</a> and interfacing with the <a href="/facts/Amoeba_(operating_system)/LXlGnRnC">Amoeba operating system</a>. Van Rossum was Python's principal author and had a central role in deciding the direction of Python (as reflected in the title given to him by the Python community, <a href="/facts/Benevolent_dictator_for_life/dhYltQlN"><i>Benevolent Dictator for Life</i> (BDFL)</a>) until stepping down as leader on July 12, 2018. Python was named after the <a href="/facts/BBC_TV/cJ56QwKM">BBC TV</a> show <i><a href="/facts/Monty_Python%2527s_Flying_Circus/9HlYg0er">Monty Python's Flying Circus</a></i>. </p><p>Python 2.0 was released on October 16, 2000, with many major new features, such as <a href="/facts/List_comprehension/aYAax9k0">list comprehensions</a>, <a href="/facts/Cycle_detection/S1dA6pJr">cycle-detecting</a> <a href="/facts/Garbage_collection_(computer_science)/j2vlIu7g">garbage collector</a>, <a href="/facts/Reference_counting/jbPcXuXe">reference counting</a>, <a href="/facts/Memory_management/vthLkUpz">memory management</a> and support for <a href="/facts/Unicode/DDu3MfPV">Unicode</a>, along with a change to the development process itself, with a shift to a more transparent and community-backed process. </p><p>Python 3.0, a major, backwards-incompatible release, was released on December 3, 2008 after a long period of testing. Many of its major features were also <a href="/facts/Backport/tyMsA9LN">backported</a> to the backwards-compatible Python versions 2.6 and 2.7 until support for Python 2 finally ceased at the beginning of <a href="/facts/2020/o49o8AaY">2020</a>. Releases of Python 3 include the 2to3 utility, which automates the translation of Python 2 code to Python 3. </p>