Outline of the Python programming language

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Python:

Python is a general-purpose, interpreted, object-oriented, multi-paradigm, and dynamically typed programming language known for its readable syntax and broad standard library. Python was created by Guido van Rossum and first released in 1991. It emphasizes code readability and developer productivity.^[1]^[2]^[3]

What type of language is Python?

Programming language — artificial language designed to communicate instructions to a machine.
Object-oriented programming — built primarily around objects and classes.
Functional programming — supports functions as first-class objects.
Scripting language — often used for automation and small programs.
General-purpose programming language — designed for a wide variety of application domains.
Dynamically typed — type checking occurs at runtime.
Interpreted language — code is executed by an interpreter.
Multi-paradigm — supports procedural, object-oriented, and functional programming.^[4]

History of Python

ABC (programming language) – precourser to Python
Python started by Guido van Rossum in 1989, first released in 1991.
Python 2 — major version released in 2000, officially retired in 2020.
Python 3 — released in 2008^[5]

General Python concepts

Issues and limitations

Performance — slower than compiled languages like C or Java, can be mitigated by C extensions or JIT compilers (PyPy).
Global interpreter lock — limits parallel CPU-bound threads in CPython
Memory consumption — high memory use compared to some lower-level languages
Version compatibility — Python 2 vs Python 3 differences caused migration issues

Python implementations

CPython — reference implementation in C
IronPython — Python for .NET
Jython — Python for the JVM
MicroPython — Python for microcontrollers and embedded systems
Nuitka — compiler that packages user code with CPython into a static binary
PyPy — JIT-compiled Python interpreter for speed
PythonAnywhere — freemium hosted Python installation that runs in the browser
Stackless Python — Python with lightweight concurrency features^[7]

Python toolchain

Notable projects using Python

YouTube (backend)
Instagram (backend)
Dropbox
Reddit
OpenStack
Blender (scripting and plugins)
SageMath
NumPy
Pandas
TensorFlow

Python development communities

ActiveState — commercial Python distributions and support
Anaconda, Inc. — Python data science ecosystem
GitHub^[8]
Python Software Foundation
Python Package Index (PyPI) — third-party software repository for Python^[9]

Example source code

Articles with example Python code

Python publications

Books about Python

Alex Martelli — Python in a Nutshell and Python Cookbook
Mark Pilgrim – Dive into Python
Naomi Ceder — The Quick Python Book
Wes McKinney — Python for Data Analysis
Zed Shaw – Learn Python the Hard Way

Textbooks

Core Python Programming

Python programmers

Python conferences

EuroPython^[10] – annual Python conference in Europe
PyCon – the largest annual convention for the Python community
PyData^[11] – conference series focused on data analysis, machine learning, and scientific computing with Python
SciPy Conferences – focused on the use of Python in scientific computing and research
DjangoCon – a conference dedicated to the Django web framework
PyOhio^[12] – a free regional Python conference held in Ohio^[13]

Python learning resources

Automate the Boring Stuff with Python^[14] – Creative Commons Python book
Codecademy – interactive Python programming lessons
GeeksforGeeks – tutorials, coding examples, and interactive programming for Python concepts and data structures.
Kaggle – free Python courses focused on data science and machine learning.
Python.org Tutorial – the official Python tutorial from the Python Software Foundation.^[15]
Real Python – articles, tutorials, and courses for Python developers.
W3Schools – beginner-friendly Python tutorials.
Wikibooks Python Programming – free open-content textbook on Python.

Competitive programming

Codeforces – an online platform for programming contests that supports Python submissions
Codewars – gamified coding challenges supporting Python
HackerRank – competitive programming and interview preparation site with Python challenges
Kaggle – while focused on data science competitions, it also includes Python-based problem solving.
LeetCode – online judge and problem-solving platform where Python is widely used

External links

References

[1] ttps://www.python.org/doc/essays/blurb/

[2] ttps://www.geeksforgeeks.org/python/python-language-advantages-applications/

[3] ttps://www.teradata.com/insights/data-platform/what-is-python-programming-language

[4] ttps://www.python.org/doc/essays/blurb/

[5] ttps://cointelegraph.com/news/history-of-python-programming-language

[6] ttps://www.w3schools.com/python/python_intro.asp

[7] ttps://www.python.org/download/alternatives/

[8] ttps://github.com/topics/python

[9] ttps://codeeasy.io/blog/best-python-programmers-communities-online

[10] ttps://www.europython-society.org/europython/

[11] ttps://pydata.org/about/

[12] ttps://www.pyohio.org/2025/

[13] ttps://www.python.org/community/workshops/

[14] ttps://automatetheboringstuff.com/

[15] ttps://python.berkeley.edu/resources/

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v t e Python
Implementations	CircuitPython CLPython CPython Cython MicroPython Numba IronPython Jython Psyco PyPy Python for S60 Shed Skin Stackless Python Unladen Swallow more...
IDEs	eric IDLE Ninja-IDE PyCharm PyDev Spyder more...
Topics	WSGI ASGI Zen of Python
Designer	Guido van Rossum
Software (list) Python Software Foundation Python Conference (PyCon)