Description #
Vala is a high-level programming language that provides modern language features and compiles to C, targeting the GNOME platform and GTK for building fast, native applications with automatic memory management.
History #
Vala was developed by Jürg Billeter and Raffaele Sandrini in 2006 to bring modern language conveniences like generics and async programming to GNOME developers without sacrificing runtime performance or introducing dependencies.
Hello World Code #
void main () {
print ("Hello, World!\n");
}How to Run #
Option 1: Online
Use Vala Playground for quick experiments.
Option 2: Local
- Install Vala compiler:
sudo apt install valac- Compile and run:
valac hello.vala
./helloKey Concepts #
- Syntax similar to C# with modern language features
- Compiles to C, producing native binaries
- Targets GNOME and GTK for GUI apps
- Supports async programming and generics
- Automatic memory management with reference counting
- Interoperable with C libraries
- No additional runtime dependencies
- Simple, expressive syntax with classes and interfaces
- Tools for introspection and bindings
- Used in many GNOME core applications
Try It Online #
Fun Facts #
- Vala lets developers write concise code while producing highly optimized C binaries.
- It bridges modern programming concepts with traditional C performance.
- The GNOME desktop environment heavily uses Vala for many system tools.
- Vala’s tooling supports automatic generation of C headers for interoperability.
- It was created to simplify GNOME app development without relying on heavier runtimes.
