# Mirah

> programming language based on Ruby language

**Wikidata**: [Q3858763](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3858763)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirah_(programming_language))  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/mirah

## Summary
Mirah is a programming language based on Ruby, designed to compile to JVM bytecode. It combines Ruby's syntax with static typing and aims to provide a more efficient alternative to Ruby for performance-critical applications.

## Key Facts
- Inception: 2008
- Latest stable version: 0.2.1 (released September 26, 2016)
- License: Apache License
- Influenced by: Ruby, Boo, and Java
- Typing discipline: Dynamic typing, static typing, strong typing, and type inference
- Operating system: Cross-platform
- Website: http://www.mirah.org and http://mirah.org/
- Source code repository: https://github.com/mirah/mirah
- Aliases: Duby
- Wikipedia title: Mirah (programming language)
- Sitelink count: 1

## FAQs
### Q: What is Mirah programming language?
A: Mirah is a programming language based on Ruby that compiles to JVM bytecode. It combines Ruby's syntax with static typing to provide better performance than Ruby while maintaining a similar development experience.

### Q: What programming paradigms does Mirah support?
A: Mirah supports object-oriented programming and imperative programming paradigms. It also features static typing, strong typing, and type inference capabilities.

### Q: What languages influenced the development of Mirah?
A: Mirah was influenced by Ruby (its base language), Boo (another programming language), and Java. These influences shaped its syntax, typing system, and JVM compilation target.

## Why It Matters
Mirah matters because it attempted to bridge the gap between Ruby's developer-friendly syntax and the performance requirements of production systems. By compiling to JVM bytecode, Mirah allowed developers to write code with Ruby-like syntax while benefiting from the JVM's performance optimizations and ecosystem. This approach addressed one of Ruby's main limitations - its interpreted nature and relatively slower execution speed compared to statically-typed languages. Mirah's design philosophy of combining dynamic language syntax with static typing discipline represented an important experiment in language design, showing how developers could have both expressiveness and performance. Although it didn't achieve widespread adoption, Mirah contributed to the ongoing exploration of alternative JVM languages and influenced thinking about how to balance developer productivity with runtime efficiency.

## Notable For
- Being one of the few programming languages that successfully combines Ruby syntax with static typing
- Compiling directly to JVM bytecode while maintaining Ruby-like syntax
- Implementing type inference to reduce boilerplate while maintaining type safety
- Supporting multiple typing disciplines (dynamic, static, strong, and inference) in a single language
- Being designed as a drop-in replacement for Ruby in performance-critical scenarios

## Body
### Language Design and Features
Mirah was designed to provide Ruby developers with a more performant alternative while maintaining familiar syntax. The language implements static typing and type inference, allowing the compiler to determine variable types automatically in many cases. This approach reduces the verbosity typically associated with statically-typed languages while maintaining the performance benefits.

### Typing System
Mirah features a sophisticated typing system that supports multiple typing disciplines:
- Dynamic typing for flexibility in development
- Static typing for performance optimization
- Strong typing to prevent type-related errors
- Type inference to reduce explicit type declarations

### Development and Community
The Mirah project was hosted on GitHub at https://github.com/mirah/mirah, making it accessible to open-source contributors. The project used the Apache License, encouraging both commercial and non-commercial use. Despite having a Wikipedia page and being listed on Open Hub, Mirah maintained a relatively small community with only 1 sitelink.

### Technical Implementation
Mirah compiles to JVM bytecode, allowing it to run on any platform with a Java Virtual Machine. This cross-platform capability, combined with JVM's mature ecosystem and performance optimizations, made Mirah an attractive option for developers seeking Ruby-like syntax with better performance characteristics.

### Version History
Mirah has seen several releases since its inception:
- Version 0.1.4 released on October 27, 2015
- Version 0.2.0 released on August 6, 2016
- Version 0.2.1 (current stable) released on September 26, 2016

Each release improved the language's stability and feature set, with version 0.2.1 being marked as the preferred version in available data.

## References

1. [The mirah Open Source Project on Open Hub: Languages Page. Open Hub](https://www.openhub.net/p/mirah/analyses/latest/languages_summary)
2. [Release 0.1.4. 2015](https://github.com/mirah/mirah/releases/tag/0.1.4)
3. [Release 0.2.0. 2016](https://github.com/mirah/mirah/releases/tag/0.2.0)
4. [Release 0.2.1. 2016](https://github.com/mirah/mirah/releases/tag/0.2.1)
5. [Source](https://api.github.com/repos/mirah/mirah)