Swift
/swift/ · noun · Development · Origin: 2014
Definitions
Apple's modern programming language for iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS development, designed as a successor to Objective-C. Swift combines high performance with safety features like optionals and strong typing, and its playground environment enables interactive development.
In plain English: Apple's programming language for building iPhone and Mac apps, designed to be safer and easier to read than its predecessor.
Example: The team rebuilt the entire app in Swift and finally got rid of the Objective-C bridging headers nightmare.
Origin Story
Apple's replacement for Objective-C was named after a bird, not speed
Chris Lattner began developing Swift in 2010 as a personal project at Apple. He'd spent years building the LLVM compiler infrastructure and saw an opportunity to create a modern language that could eventually replace Objective-C.
The name **Swift** was inspired by the swift bird, known for its agility and speed. The bird connection also tied into Apple's tradition of nature-inspired naming (macOS versions named after California landmarks). Lattner worked on it largely in secret for several years before Apple unveiled it at WWDC 2014.
The announcement shocked the developer community. Apple had invested decades in Objective-C, and few expected a complete replacement. Swift's modern syntax, safety features, and Playground environment made iOS development dramatically more accessible.
Coined by: Chris Lattner
Context: Apple, 2010 (announced 2014)
Fun fact: Lattner created LLVM as his master's thesis at the University of Illinois. He later left Apple for Tesla, then Google, then joined the startup Modular to create the Mojo language -- making him one of the few people to create two significant programming languages.