COBOL, which stands for Common Business-Oriented Language, was developed in the late 1950s as a joint effort among industry, government, and academic circles to create a universal programming language that could be used across various business and financial applications. Its primary design goal was to be readable and accessible to people who were not primarily trained in computer science, making it one of the first programming languages intended to be somewhat user-friendly. The development was led by Grace Hopper, a pioneering computer scientist who believed that a programming language based on English could make computers accessible to more people.
The syntax of COBOL is highly verbose, which means that it uses more words and phrases that are similar to English than other programming languages. This verbosity makes COBOL programs particularly self-documenting; the code itself tends to explain what it does, which can be helpful for long-term maintenance and updates. COBOL's structure is divided into four divisions: Identification, Environment, Data, and Procedure, which help organize the program logically and make it easier for humans to understand and manage.
COBOL has been a cornerstone in the realm of business computing for decades. It excels in processing large volumes of data with exceptional reliability and efficiency, which is why it has been extensively used in industries like banking, insurance, and government. For instance, COBOL systems handle the bulk of the world's financial transactions, underpinning the global economy. Its ability to run on older hardware and its compatibility with new technologies have enabled COBOL to withstand the test of time, despite the advent of more modern programming languages.
Despite predictions of its demise, COBOL remains critically important. As of the early 21st century, there is an estimated 220 billion lines of COBOL code still in use, with additional lines written each year. The challenge now is the shortage of new programmers trained in COBOL, as many educational institutions prefer teaching more contemporary languages like Python or Java. This situation has led to a niche demand for COBOL programmers, particularly as experienced programmers retire. The enduring legacy of COBOL underscores its design as a robust, adaptable, and enduring language that continues to serve critical economic functions.