A programming language defines code: its lexicon and use. It also defines its executor: the virtual machine a programmer can make use of to initiate computer activity. This language has a narrow definition of both. There is only one possible program, whose text is the first sentence in the Wikipedia page for Programming Language, period included. Each time that sentence changes, the language's name and only possible program update as well. When this program is run, it outputs its source code. Only this quine program is possible, although it can appear multiple times in a program, each outputting itself.
The Dragon Book defines a recognizer for a language as a program that takes as input a string x and answers "yes" if x is a sentence of the language and "no" otherwise. The recognizer is central to the concept of this language. It classifies texts into those that invoke self-replication vs. those that are ignored. The output recites this single phrase; all other text disappears.
The lack of other text creates a space for contemplation of this sentence; of which languages it describes or fails to describe. This language is sometimes within that definition, but often outside. In its bookmarklet form, non-textual content like images and formatting HTML elements are also left alone, allowing visual space to adorn the sentence.
It should be noted that very few have programmed this language intentionally, and yet thousands of programs exist.
It is one of forty-four included in my upcoming book Forty-Four Esolangs: The Art of Esoteric Code.
Links
- Bookmarklet on Github: This also collects the history of the first sentence from Github, for use in other interpreters for this language
- Esolangs Wiki entry, with more implementations
- An esoteric programming language (ess-oh-terr-ick), or esolang, is a computer programming language designed to experiment with weird ideas, to be hard to program in, or as a joke, rather than for practical use., a derivative language by Schmuui
- More esolang projects
- My upcoming monograph of esolangs to be published Sept 23, 2025 by MIT Press
Program Gallery
"A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs."
https://www.coursehero.com/file/201144821/Programmapdf/
"A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs."
https://quizlet.com/944076104/codehs-unit-3-vocabulary-flash-cards/
"A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs."
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/programming-language-karthikeyan-d/
"A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Programming_language
"A programming language is any set of rules that converts strings, or graphical program elements in the case of visual programming languages, to various kinds of machine code output."
https://www.thetechplatform.com/post/programming-languages/
"A programming language is an artificial language designed to communicate instructions to a machine, particularly a computer."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outline_of_Perl
"A programming language is an artificial language designed to express computations that can be performed by a machine, particularly a computer."
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1775799/what-is-a-programming-language
"A programming language is a formal language that specifies a set of instructions that can be used to produce various kinds of output."
https://www.bing.com/...