Python is currently among the most used programming languages. It’s also well regarded, even surpassing Java in popularity (as per a recent Stack Overflow poll). It’s even considered an essential programming language by some developers.

Python is so well known due to its ease of learning and use. Additionally, there are many libraries that can be used in your projects!

But, throughout your Python programming career, have you ever questioned why Python is called Python rather than P, P++, or P#?

What is Python Named After?

Python was created by Guido van Rossum. Guido van Rossum was developing Python while also reading Monty Python’s Flying Circus published scripts. He decided to name his programming language “Python” after Monty Python’s Flying Circus because he wanted it to be original, mysterious, and short.

Several Easter eggs based on Monty Python television show can be spotted in the Python documentation:

There are mentions of spam, eggs, lumberjacks, and knights, among other things (these being references to the show) :

https://docs.python.org/3/library/pprint.html

What is Monty Python?

If you haven’t heard of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, it is a British comedy television series that aired from 1969 to 1970. It’s a successful show with an IMDB rating of 8.8.

The comedy series is intriguing because it is unique and…well… bizarre. It discusses everything. But some say it might not be funny for everyone.

Fun fact: The Python programming language has been influenced by a variety of languages. Did you realize that ABC inspired its control and data structures? It uses C for its identifiers, strings, and percent-string formats, and Perl for its regular expressions.

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