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Languages in the programming world are replete, and can rise and fall with the changing demands and technologies. For this article, we have gathered answers from the industry as well as from chronological facts to let the reader understand the languages that now are or about to become dead and the reasons behind that phenomenon.

To get these insights, for instance Stack Overflow, GitHub, and the State of Developer Survey, we looked at various year-on-year language surveys to check the patterns of the discrimination. We also examined such reports issued by the research- and tech- companies, including but not limited to the Google trends, to follow the increasing and downward trends in the use of distinct programming languages.

After all these examinations, we were able to construct a list of dead programming languages. Languages that have either been relegated or are on the verge of being relegated. We would like to examine them as well as what messages their pasts give to contemporaneous programmers. So, let's review this list so that questions like “Is Java dying?” will no longer bother you.

Objective-C

Objective-C is an object-oriented programming language that was created in 1980. It is based on the C programming language and incorporates elements of Smalltalk, an object-oriented language. For a long time, it was the main programming language in which applications for Apple's system, including iOS and macOS were written. Nonetheless, even though it is a significant language, the popularity of Objective-C has been in decline ever since Apple introduced Swift back in 2014.

There are many aspects that account for this decline in popularity. Like the difficult complex syntax of Objective-C, which is based on Smalltalk and quite often tends to be lengthy and hard to navigate for any developer who does not speak the language fluently. But the main reason is a Swift introduction. Inspired directly by the failures of Objective-C, Swift was created with the purpose of replacing it. Thanks to its contemporary syntax, enhanced security, and speed optimization Swift became a language of choice for iOS and macOS software development in no time.

Even though the Objective-C language was essential in the development process for Apple, in recent years this programming language’s popularity has dropped drastically. This is due to its old-fashioned structure, the level of difficulty and, of course, thanks to the existence of Swift. As has been the case with Apple’s persistent advance of the Swift language, the chances of Objective-C coming back are very slim, although it has its place when it comes to preserving old applications and working with other older technologies.

Pascal

Pascal is a procedural programming language designed and developed in about the 1960s by Niklaus Wirth mainly for the purpose of teaching structured programming and data structuring. Named after the mathematician Blaise Pascal, the language had become popular due to its clear structure which favors the use of words without much complication making it easy to learn hence taught in schools.

Even though Pascal was able to work out efficiently in schools, it was more difficult to move towards using its capabilities in programming for business enterprises due to the shortfalls in low-level programming and limitations of large systems. With the development of programming languages, the pace at which Pascal’s programmers advanced in development and accepted new libraries, frames, and aspects of programming languages which were crucial to the developers by this time was low. Simply put, due to the unavailability of adequate supporting libraries as well as a dwindling community around Pascal, it became less desirable as compared to other languages that were more developed like Python and JavaScript.

Pascal is a maxim in history due to the contribution it provided as a learning device and as the one of the earliest espouses of structured programming techniques. Even if it no longer maintains a status as a relevant programming language today, it could not be denied that it has its share of probability and many of its ideas have been seen in contemporary programming dialects today. Pascal may not be in active use today, but its impact on programming pedagogy and the structured programming paradigm is significant nevertheless.

Perl

Perl is a general-purpose programming language that mainly performs text processing, system administration, and a variety of programming tasks, which was created by Larry wall in 1987.

Perl was a language that gained popularity for a while, but in recent years, its utilization has experienced a remarkable decrease. Due to some factors, including difficult and oftentimes ambiguous syntax. Perl is very versatile, but the structure it reads and maintains can be a challenge. The philosophy “there is more than one way to do it” was creative but led to poorly structured code. So that the code was mostly unreadable. Python came into the market with the same capability for scripting and web and data applications but with clean, easy syntax.

So, is Perl dead? While it once led the charge in the development of web-based applications and processing of textual content, the fading of Perl emphasizes the essence of readable, maintainable code as well as user support in today’s programming landscape. If you're wondering, is Perl still used, it is common for software developers to use a programming language which is more clear, simple, easier to maintain and incorporate into the bigger picture like Python, Ruby, or JavaScript.

Cobol

Common Business Oriented Language (COBOL), although created in 1959, has pretty much stood the test of time as one of the most utilized programming languages coming to the present. Designed with business, finance and administrative spheres in mind, COBOL is popular for its easy English to coding translation, thereby making it easy for even the non-technical people. For more than four decades, COBOL was the primary language for business computers, especially for those industries that include but are not limited to finance, healthcare, and government operations.

Nonetheless, notwithstanding its duration and existence in numerous aging infrastructures, the global appeal of COBOL has been a slow but sure decline. The main factors that have contributed to the decline of the language are its dated usage and language construction. The language is regarded as such due to its lengthy and very old school way of constructing sentences in order to convey a message. Besides, the cost, time, and effort required to make these modifications to COBOL systems in order for them to work with these newer technologies is prohibitive. This has led to more and more organizations thinking of moving to new systems or of putting layers over the existing COBOL code that allow its use with modern technology stacks.

COBOL is a critical component of thousands of systems still operated in the world today in largely banking, government and insurance sectors. Modernization has its challenges, a dwindling pool of skilled practitioners and the advent of cheaper and elastic solutions foresee the question about the longevity of COBOL systems.

Ada

In the 1970s and 1980s, the U.S. Department of Defense developed Ada as a high-level, statically typed, structured programming language with an emphasis on reliability and safety in large scale mission-critical systems. Ada is named in honor of Ada Lovelace, and is particularly recognized for its extensive support of modular programming, real-time systems and embedded systems. The language, by its very nature, incorporates strict typing, has concurrency controls, more so prevents errors via heavy compile-time checks, hence making it suitable for those applications that require high accuracy and dependability. Owing to these reasons, Ada found great success in industries that had high-class reliability requirements, such as aerospace, defense, and aviation.

Ada’s contributions to programming, particularly in safety-critical applications, are significant, and it continues to be used in sectors where reliability is paramount. However, the language’s limited scope, steep learning curve, and shrinking talent pool have led to a gradual decline in popularity. For many applications, modern languages like Rust, C++, and even Java offer sufficient reliability and a broader support ecosystem, making them more appealing alternatives for new projects. Though Ada remains relevant in specific industries, its use is likely to continue declining as new, more versatile languages are developed to meet the demands of modern software engineering.

Legacy Programming Languages: Conclusion

There has been advancement in technologies, hence constant changes in programming languages. It is fair to say, however, that every programming language, once developed, had its years of prominence and importance, given the requirements and limitations of the time. Most importantly, it is often found that languages which are praised in a certain period over time with the passing of technological evolution and development factors become obsolete. Many old coding languages like Objective-C, Pascal, Perl, COBOL, and Ada have existed and flourished in computing history, nevertheless, they are confined to legacy systems and niche software applications today.

While some of these older programming languages have been retained for the sake of legacy systems, their shadows however can be seen in the design tenets and structures of modern programming languages. Such programming languages no longer exist in vain because more effective and safer means of programming are being created. In this current age when almost every industry relies on specific computer programs, there is no doubt that some reigning programming languages would also be irrelevant in a few years to come and be replaced by other new growing languages to cater for growth industries, new platforms, and paradigms.