Guido van Rossum (born 1956) is a Dutch programmer best known as the creator of Python. He guided Python’s development as its “Benevolent Dictator For Life” (BDFL) until stepping down in 2018, making Python one of the world’s most influential languages.
Background
Van Rossum worked at Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) in Amsterdam on the ABC language before creating Python. ABC’s ideas about readability and beginner-friendliness influenced Python, though van Rossum addressed what he saw as ABC’s limitations.
Creating Python
During Christmas 1989, van Rossum began Python as a “hobby programming project.” Named after Monty Python’s Flying Circus, the language reflected his desire for programming to be fun. Python 0.9.0 was released in 1991.
The BDFL Model
Van Rossum served as Python’s BDFL, having final say in language design decisions. This governance model—common in open source—meant his taste and judgment shaped Python’s evolution. He stepped down in 2018, transferring governance to a steering council.
Design Taste
Van Rossum’s design decisions reflect strong opinions:
- Significant whitespace makes code consistently formatted
- “There should be one—and preferably only one—obvious way to do it”
- Resist adding features unless clearly necessary
- Practical beats pure—Python isn’t purely anything
Later Career
After CWI, van Rossum worked at Google (2005-2012), Dropbox (2013-2019), and Microsoft (2020-present). At each company, he worked on Python-related projects while the language continued its growth into one of the most widely used in the world.