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A Detailed History Of C++ Explained With Timeline Infographic

The C++ programming language is one of the most popular programming languages out there, and it has been in use for over four decades now. But do you know about the history of C++ and its timeline? If not, then you are definitely in for a treat.

In this article, we will take a closer look at the history of C++ programming language, its origin, who invented C++, its importance, scope, etc. We'll also provide a comparison between C++ and some other popular programming languages. So let's get started!

A Brief Intro To C++

C++ is a general-purpose, middle-level language that was originally developed by Danish computer scientist Bjarne Stroustrup in 1979 at Bell Laboratories USA. As many of you must know, a mid-level programming language is a combination of low-level & high-level programming languages.

The C++ language was initially designed as an extension of the C language which was widely used in system programming and Unix-based OS. Also, C was developed in 1970 by Dennis Ritchie while at Bell Labs (formerly AT&T Bell Labs).
Over the years, C++ has become one of the most widely used programming languages and has a variety of applications in areas like gaming, robotics, finance, and scientific computing.

The developers have also introduced several new versions of the language with considerable changes in the spirit of staying up-to-date and competing with other modern programming languages. So, let's have a look at the timeline and version history of C++.

The Timeline Of C++

Here is a broad timeline of the C++ programming language showcasing how it has progressed over the years:

C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup while working on his PhD thesis at Bell Labs in 1979. He wanted to create a dynamic language that would allow programmers to build complex systems with high-level abstractions while still providing low-level access to the hardware.

To get this done, he extended the C language to include features such as classes, objects, inheritance, abstraction, and polymorphism to make it easier to write efficient, modular, and reusable code.

Fun Fact: The widely known Bell Labs was originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories, then AT&T Bell Laboratories, and then Bell Labs Innovations. Currently, the labs are named after its present parent company as the Nokia Bell Labs.

In 1983, the first version of C++ was released to the public. At this point, Rick Mascitti also modified language name from 'C with classes' to 'C++'. It is interesting to note that the '++' in the name represents the associate operator/ increment operator which was missing in C.
At this point, many add-on features were added to this cross-platform programming language, including strong type checking, basic inheritance, const keyword, virtual functions, etc. It quickly gained popularity amongst novice as well as experienced programmers alike and was also adopted by many companies for software development.
In 1985, the first edition of 'The C++ Programming Language' was published, which became the definitive guide to the language and helped to establish C++ as a mainstream programming language. Since then, there have been several major releases and standards of the language.
In 1998, C++98, the first international standardized version of C++, was released. It included additional libraries and various new features such as C++ templates, exceptions, and namespaces.
In 2011, a more advanced version of the language was released, i.e. C++11, which introduced several important features such as regular expressions, Regex support, move semantics, range-based for loops, lambda expressions, standard threading library, customary threading library, time library, etc. This was followed by C++14, C++17, and most recently, C++20.
Each one of these future versions of the language improved upon existing features. There have also been several ISO standards for C++, including ISO/IEC 14882:1998 (C++98), ISO/IEC 14882:2011 (C++11), ISO/IEC 14882:2014 (C++14), and ISO/IEC 14882:2017 (C++17), with the latest being ISO/IEC 14882:2020 (C++20).
These international standards have helped ensure the consistency and portability of the language across different platforms and implementations.

Importance Of C++

Listed below are a few points emphasizing the importance of C++:

C++ is one of the most popular and important programming languages in the world, with a wide range of applications in many different industries.
It is widely used for systems programming, gaming, finance, scientific computing, and robotics, among other areas. It’s especially useful in building complex software systems, where performance, efficiency, and reliability are crucial.
One of its most valuable features is its ability to provide low-level access to hardware resources. This makes it an ideal language for developing system-level software, such as device drivers, operating systems, and embedded systems.
It’s also a highly popular choice for scientific computing and is used to build high-performance numerical libraries and simulation tools.

Versions Of C++ Language

Any discussion on the history of C++ language is incomplete without a mention of various versions released so far. The table below provides a concise overview of the key developments in each major version of C++.

Version	Year of Release	Key Features	Major Changes
C++98	1998	- First ISO standard - Introduced templates and exceptions in C++	- Established the Standard Template Library (STL) - Introduced namespaces
C++03	2003	- Bug fixes and improvements - Library refinements	- Made STL more robust - Fixed language ambiguities
C++11	2011	- Lambda expressions - Move semantics - Range-based for loops	- Introduced auto keyword for type inference - Standard threading library
C++14	2014	- Enhanced lambda expressions - Generic lambdas - Binary literals	- Introduced return type deduction - Simplified memory management
C++17	2017	- std::optional, std::variant, std::any - Structured bindings - constexpr if	- Improved compile-time programming - Introduced parallel algorithms
C++20	2020	- Concepts and ranges - Coroutines - Calendar and timezone library	- Introduced modules - Expanded constexpr capabilities
C++23 (Upcoming)	2023 (Expected)	- Likely improvements to existing features - Possible new libraries	- Expected further simplifications and optimizations

Also Read: Structure of C++ Programs Explained With Examples

Comparison With Other Popular Programming Languages

Here is a comparison of C++ with two other popular programming languages:

Java & C++

C++ is a statically typed language, which means that the data types of variables are declared at compile time. In comparison, Java is a dynamically typed language, which means that the data types of variables are declared at runtime.
Memory management is manual in C++, i.e. it’s the responsibility of the programmer to manually allocate and deallocate memory. In Java, memory management is done by the JVM, which performs garbage collection to free memory.
C++ is generally faster than Java, but it’s less portable compared to Java language. Java also has a larger ecosystem of libraries and frameworks.

Also read: Top 15+ Difference Between C++ And Java Explained! (+Similarities)

Python & C++

Python has a simpler syntax than C++, which makes it easier to understand and use. C++ has a complex syntax and is considered one of the tougher languages to learn.
Also, C++ is statically typed, while Python is a dynamically typed language.
Python is highly portable and can run on any platform that has a Python interpreter. In comparison, C++ has to be compiled separately for each platform.
C++ is a compiler-based language and is, hence, faster than Python and other such interpreted languages (including Java). Though Python has a larger and more robust ecosystem of libraries and frameworks, making it easier to use.
Memory management is manual in C++, i.e., it’s the responsibility of the programmer to manually allocate and deallocate memory. In Python, memory management is done automatically by the interpreter.

Conclusion

The history of C++ is definitely rich and fascinating, and to this day, it remains one of the most widely used programming languages in the world. It’s very flexible and efficient, making it ideal for a wide range of applications. The support offered with the addition of OOP paradigms and interfaces provides programmers with powerful tools for software design. While novice programmers might find it to be a bit complex to learn, there is no denying the fact that it is one of the most rewarding languages to use. Essentially, it remains a vital part of today’s programming landscape.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Who invented C++? How old is it?

C++ was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup in 1979 at Bell Labs. Around the same time, he was also working on his Ph.D. thesis. He is regarded as the Father of C++. As of 2023, the C++ programming language is 44 years old.

Q2. Is C++ a dead language?

Absolutely not! You might have heard some people say that this language is dead and has become redundant today. However, the fact that C++ still remains one of the most popular and widely used programming languages in the world, even 44 years after it first came out, negates such claims. In fact, in January, C++ won the Tiobe programming language of the year designation for 2022.

Q3. Which is older- C or C++?

The short answer is C. Programming language C was originally developed in 1972 and is considered the mother of all languages since most compilers are written in C. Also, many newer programming languages follow the C syntax, including C++ which was developed in 1979, as an extension of C. So as you can see, the C language is older than C++.

Q4. When was C++ first introduced?

C++ was originally invented in 1979 by the danish developer Bjarne Stroustrup. However, it was only in 1983, that the first version of C++ was released to the public. It quickly gained popularity among programmers worldwide and was adopted by many companies as well. The rest as they say is history!

Q5. Why was C++ introduced?

It was developed to build complex systems with high-level abstractions while still providing low-level access to the hardware. Stroustrup wanted to extend the C language and include features such as classes, inheritance, abstraction, and polymorphism to make it easier to write efficient, modular, and reusable code.

Q6. Which is older- Python or C++?

The C++ language is definitely older than Python. C++ was developed in 1979 and made available to the public in 1983, while the implementation of Python began only in 1989.

Q7. What kind of language is C++?

C++ is a general-purpose programming language that combines both high-level and low-level language features. It is considered a Superset of C. It’s also an object oriented programming language. It has wide applications across domains and industries across the world.

Q8. What was C++ originally called?

Bjarne Stroustrup initially called the language “C with classes”, when he developed it in 1979. But in 1982-83, Bjarne upgraded the language to include various new features, and at that point, the language was renamed C++. Computer scientist Rick Mascitti is credited for coining the new name.

Q9. Is C++ the oldest programming language?

C++ is not the oldest programming language. The first commercially available language was FORTRAN which was developed in 1957. In comparison, C++ was invented in 1979 and it was first made public in 1983.

Q10. Is C++ better than Java?

To say that one of these languages is better than the other in absolute terms is not sensible. That's because each of them has its own strengths and weaknesses. Both are highly popular programming languages used widely in various areas. For example, while C++ is faster than Java, Java is more beginner friendly in comparison to C++.

Q11. Which is more popular- C or C++?

C++ is more popular than C. It contains all the features and benefits of C while providing various new features and OOP paradigms, such as classes, inheritance, and polymorphism.

Q12. Is C++ the mother of all languages?

No, it is the C programming language, which is considered the mother of all languages. This is because many believe that once you master the concepts of C, you can understand and work with any of the other programming languages. Many of the high-level languages are based on C, including C++.

Q13. What is STL in C++?

The STL (Standard Template Library), provides generic algorithms and data structures such as vectors, containers, and iterators. The STL makes it easier to write efficient and reusable code.

Q14. What is the difference between C and C++?

C++ is an object-oriented programming language and an extension of C. In contrast, C is a procedural-oriented programming language. Also, C++ is an extension of the C language, having all the features of C but also adding various new features such as OOP, regex support, range-based for loops, etc. Read this article to know more about the differences-

This compiles our discussion on the history of C++ programming language. Do check out the following to explore more on C++:

Shivani Goyal

Manager, Content

An economics graduate with a passion for storytelling, I thrive on crafting content that blends creativity with technical insight. At Unstop, I create in-depth, SEO-driven content that simplifies complex tech topics and covers a wide array of subjects, all designed to inform, engage, and inspire our readers. My goal is to empower others to truly #BeUnstoppable through content that resonates. When I’m not writing, you’ll find me immersed in art, food, or lost in a good book—constantly drawing inspiration from the world around me.