Guido van Rossum (Dutch: [ˈxidoː vɑn ˈrɔsʏm]; born 31 January 1956) is a Dutch programmer. He created the Python programming language and was the "benevolent dictator for life" (BDFL) until he left the position on 12 July 2018. He continued to be a member of the Python Steering Council until 2019 and chose not to be considered for the 2020 election.
Life and education
Van Rossum was born and grew up in the Netherlands. He earned a master's degree in mathematics and computer science from the University of Amsterdam in 1982. In 1974, he won a bronze medal in the International Mathematical Olympiad. His brother, Just van Rossum, is a type designer and programmer who created the typeface for the "Python Powered" logo.
Van Rossum currently lives in Belmont, California, with his wife, Kim Knapp, and their son.
Work
While working at the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI), Van Rossum wrote and added a glob() routine to BSD Unix in 1986. He also helped create the ABC programming language. He once said, "I try to mention ABC's influence because I am thankful for everything I learned during that project and to the people who worked on it." He also created Grail, an early web browser written in Python, and took part in discussions about the HTML standard.
Van Rossum has worked at several research institutes, including the CWI in the Netherlands, the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI). In May 2000, he left CNRI with three other Python developers to join BeOpen.com, a tech startup. The company closed down by October 2000. From late 2000 until 2003, he worked for Zope Corporation. In 2003, he left Zope to join Elemental Security, where he developed a custom programming language for the company.
From 2005 to December 2012, Van Rossum worked at Google. During this time, he spent half of his work hours improving the Python language. At Google, he created Mondrian, a web-based code review system written in Python used by the company. He named the software after the Dutch painter Piet Mondrian. He also named another project, Rietveld, after Gerrit Rietveld, a Dutch designer. On December 7, 2012, Van Rossum left Google.
In January 2013, he began working at Dropbox, a company that provides cloud file storage. In October 2019, he left Dropbox and officially retired. On November 12, 2020, Van Rossum announced he was returning from retirement to join the Developer Division at Microsoft. He currently holds the title of Distinguished Engineer at Microsoft.
Python
In December 1989, Van Rossum was looking for a fun programming project to keep him busy during the week around Christmas. His office was closed, so he decided to create an interpreter for a new scripting language he had been thinking about. This language was based on ABC and designed to appeal to Unix/C programmers. He named the language Python after the comedy group Monty Python's Flying Circus, not because of the snake.
Van Rossum explained that ABC, Python's predecessor, was influenced by SETL. He noted that Lambert Meertens, one of ABC's co-developers, had worked with the SETL group at NYU for a year before finalizing the ABC design.
On July 12, 2018, Van Rossum announced he would no longer serve as the benevolent dictator for life of the Python programming language.
"Computer Programming for Everybody" proposal
In 1999, Van Rossum sent a request for money to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) titled "Computer Programming for Everybody." In this request, he explained his goals for Python:
- A simple and easy-to-use language with power equal to major competitors
- Open source, meaning anyone can help improve it
- Code that is as clear to read as regular English
- Ability to complete everyday tasks quickly
In 2019, Python was the second most used language on GitHub, the largest website for managing computer code, after JavaScript. In 2024, Python became the most used language on GitHub, surpassing JavaScript after JavaScript had been the most used language for 10 years. According to a survey about programming language popularity, Python is often listed in the top 10 most mentioned languages in job postings. Additionally, Python has been among the 10 most popular programming languages every year since 2004, as reported by the TIOBE Programming Community Index. In October 2021, Python was the most popular language on this index.
Awards
- In 2002, at the FOSDEM conference in Brussels, Van Rossum was given the 2001 Award for the Advancement of Free Software by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) for his work on Python.
- In May 2003, he was honored with a NLUUG Award.
- In 2006, he was named an ACM Distinguished Engineer.
- In 2018, he was named a Fellow of the Computer History Museum.
- In 2019, he received the honorary title of Dijkstra Fellow from CWI.
- In 2023, he was awarded the C&C Prize by NEC Corporation for his role in creating the Python programming language.