Programming Language · Compiler Basics · Education
Englang
An English-like programming language for people who understand logic before syntax
Problem
Most beginners abandon their first language on syntax, not logic — semicolons and braces get in the way before the ideas of variables, loops and functions ever land.
Engineering challenge
Write a real lexer, parser and runtime — not a toy string-replace trick — that executes readable, English-like statements directly, then design a syntax progression that moves a learner toward conventional code without a jarring jump.
What I built
- Hand-written lexer, parser and runtime in JavaScript, distributed via Node.js and a browser CDN bundle
- A three-stage syntax progression: V1 reads like English ("set name to \"Alice\". print \"Hello\", name."), V2 moves to symbolic pseudocode, V3 lands on curly-brace syntax close to JavaScript
- A documentation site built on Docusaurus with a test suite backing the interpreter
Outcome
Englang's most-starred personal repository, still actively maintained, with live docs at englang.pephub.tech.