# Programming Language Checklist

**URL:** https://discourse.julialang.org/t/programming-language-checklist/34457
**Category:** Offtopic
**Created:** [February 11, 2020, 9:25am UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/programming-language-checklist/34457 "2020-02-11T09:25:43Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Showing post:** 5

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### Author: ![Tamas\_Papp](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/julialang/user_avatar/discourse.julialang.org/tamas_papp/32/25949_2.png) [@Tamas\_Papp](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Tamas_Papp)
#### Post date: [February 11, 2020, 2:13pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/programming-language-checklist/34457/5 "2020-02-11T14:13:37Z")

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I don’t understand why not having an (independent, formal) specification is considered unusual for a new language.

It is pretty much impossible to create a nontrivial and novel language with a finalized spec. Either it is going to be super-simple like Scheme, a \epsilon improvement on an existing language, or take 15–20 years until someone bothers to do an official spec (eg C or Common Lisp).

When done too early, all specifications do is tie down the best minds working on the language for years, essentially stalling all development.

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