APL

Description #

APL (A Programming Language) is a concise, array-oriented functional programming language known for its use of special symbols to perform complex operations on arrays with minimal code.

History #

Developed in the early 1960s by Kenneth E. Iverson, APL introduced many functional programming concepts and was originally designed as a mathematical notation. It heavily influenced array programming and inspired later languages such as J and K.

Hello World Code #

'Hello, World!'

How to Run #

Option 1: Online
Try APL on TryAPL

Option 2: Local

• Install GNU APL:

sudo apt-get install gnu-apl

Run interpreter:

apl

Key Concepts #

• Array programming paradigm
• Functional and tacit programming
• Powerful operators on arrays and matrices
• Concise symbolic syntax
• Interactive REPL environment
• Emphasis on data transformation
• Support for higher-order functions
• Dynamic typing
• Strong mathematical expressiveness
• Influenced many modern data languages

Try It Online #

https://tryapl.org

Fun Facts #

• APL’s symbols were inspired by mathematical notation, requiring specialized keyboards originally.
• It is popular in finance and engineering for rapid prototyping and numerical computing.
• APL programs are often extremely compact, with entire algorithms expressed in just a few characters.

Resources #

Official GNU APL
APL Wiki
Learn APL