Programming Language Generations

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Programming languages have been classified into several programming language generations. Historically, this classification was used to indicate increasing power of programming styles. Later writers have somewhat redefined the meanings as distinctions previously seen as important became less significant to current practice. The terms "first-generation" and "second-generation" programming language were not used prior to the coining of the term "third-generation." In fact, none of these three terms are mentioned in an early compendium of programming languages. The introduction of a third generation of computer technology coincided with the creation of a new generation of programming languages. The marketing for this generational shift in machines did correlate with several important changes in what were called high level programming languages, discussed below, giving technical content to the second/third-generation distinction among high level programming languages as well, and reflexively renaming assembler languages as first-generation.