There are more than 100 programming languages, some are built to solve specific problems and some are there to built general-purpose applications. The list is huge and creates a question, on how to pick the one that suits your need or your career goal. Below mentioned are the Top 7 programming languages to focus on in 2021.
The languages mentioned here are based on the Stack Overflow survey for the year 2020 and the list contains languages to cover all areas of software development, from mobile application to web application, from cloud application to embedded application, from IoT to Data Science, and from Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence to building Compilers.
Top 7 Programming Languages
Python
Python is one of the most popular and fastest-growing programming language. It is easy to learn, user-friendly and is considered the most suitable programming language for beginners. It is open-source and widely is used in the software industry.
Python is a very versatile programming language and can be used to build almost any type of application. Whether you want to do Web development, full stack programming, or want to build applications in the area of Data Science, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence, you have it all.
Some of the most popular frameworks available for Python are Django, Flask, Pyramid for Web Development, Django, Web2Py, TurboGears for Full Stack Development, NumPy, TensorFlow, PyTorch, Scikit-learn, Pandas, MXNet for Data Science, ML, and AI purposes.
Few of the popular application build using Python are Instagram, Pinterest, Dropbox, Uber, and Reddit
Java
Java is an extremely popular programming language and has always been in high demand in the software industry for quite a long time. The language has been used to build all different types of applications and has a large application base in the industry due to its scalability, memory management, platform independence, and high performance.
It is used to build applications ranging from mobile applications to Web applications, from gaming applications to scientific applications to IoT applications.
The Java language has been in this industry for a long time, therefore, has a huge community base, extensive documentation. An abundance of great and open source projects are built on it. Apache, Eclipse IDE, Google Docs, NASA World Wind, Mars Rover Controller, Android are just a few of the examples that are build using this programming language.
JavaScript
JavaScript is almost synonymous with Web development and is the most dominant client-side scripting language of the Web (Even termed as the default language of the internet). Around 95% of the world’s websites use JavaScript (source wiki). As per Stack Overflow JavaScript is the most popular programming language actively being used by professional developers. JavaScript not only allows to build the frontend of the Website but works equally well to manage the backend services.
JavaScript is very easy to learn. As all the browsers have the built-in support for it, therefore no additional development environment setup is required to start with, just write your code using any simple text editor and you are ready to test your code using the browser. JavaScript is one of the most popular languages has a huge community base along with great documentation.
A few of the popular frameworks build using JavaScript are, Node.js, ReactJs, Vue.js. A few of the well-known websites that are build using JavaScript are Google.com, YouTube, Facebook, Yahoo.
C and C++
C and C++ are the most efficient and highly performant programming languages. They are general-purpose programming languages and are mostly used in developing low-level systems like Operating System, Kernel Development, Embedded Systems, Game Development, Virtual Reality, etc.
These languages are also used to create the baseline in the development of other programming languages. Like for example, the core of the JVM is written in C++, the Python interpreter, JavaScript V8 Engine is all implemented in C++.
C/C++ has a steep learning curve and the language offers low-level programming elements like pointers, memory management, template expansion, multi-threaded data race, etc for the developer to handle. The understanding of these languages not only helps you to build great performant applications but also helps you to understand the fundamental of the computers well like networking, operating system, computer architecture.
C/C++ is an old programming language and due to which it has built a great community base, documentations, and has a great list of libraries for use. A few of the applications that are build using these languages are Windows, Linux, Andriod, Chrome, Firefox, Safari, MySQL, MongoDB, etc.
C#
C# is a flexible, cross-platform, open-sourced high-level language developed and maintained by Microsoft and has been in the programming world for over two decades. It is used to develop a plethora of different application types like Web applications, Game applications using Unity framework, Mobile application using Xamarin framework, Cloud-based applications, Enterprise applications and is a perfect language to develop Windows-based application.
The C# language is easy to learn and abstract away most of the low-level tasks and is designed for ease of use and developer productivity in mind. It is backed with great documentation. The .NET Core and .NET Framework provide a great set of reusable libraries covering most of the common functionalities required to build an application.
Starting with being a strongly typed object-oriented programming language, C# has evolved into a multi-paradigm programming language and now supports imperative, declarative, generic, and functional programming language.
Kotlin
Kotlin is a general-purpose open-sourced programming language designed and developed by JetBrains. Kotlin is used to develop mobile, desktop, web, and server-side applications. But from the time Google has announced Kotlin as the preferred language for Android applications over Java, it is extensively used for developing Android applications.
Kotlin is interoperable with Java language and allows the developer to work seamlessly between the two languages. Over time it has become a popular alternative to the Java language. Kotlin requires fewer lines of code to accomplish a task than that of other languages as it is built to be inherently concise language.
If you are looking for building Android applications then Kotlin must be your first choice. Kotlin comes with great documentation and has a great community base. Few famous apps built with Kotlin: Pinterest, Evernote, Trello, Uber.
Go
Go or GoLang is an open-sourced and simple to learn programming language. It is developed and maintained by Google. In recent times it has become the fastest-growing language due to its simplicity it offers and its ability to handle multicore processing, network systems, and massive codebase. The language is highly performant and is super efficient at concurrency handling.
Go is not an object-oriented language and does not have the concept of inheritance. In Go, everything is divided into packages and has structures instead of classes as in other languages. These concepts make the Go application easier to maintain and modify as a class level inheritance check is not required.
It has good documentation support and has a large set of libraries to handle the common tasks. A few of the applications written using the GoLang are Kubernetes, Blockchain Terraform, Prometheus, Docker, InfluxDB.
Conclusion
JavaScript and Python are the two most popular programming languages in the list provided. GoLang is gaining more and more popularity in the industry and is believed to be in great demand in the near future. All the languages mentioned above are the most popular and widely used programming languages and are definitely worth looking at.
I hope you find the post on Top 7 programming languages to focus on in 2021 useful. Thanks for visiting. Cheers!!!
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