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Zen of Python

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The Zen of Python is a collection of 19 <a href="Coding_conventions" title="Coding conventions">"guiding principles"</a> for writing <a href="Computer_program" title="Computer program">computer programs</a> that influence the design of the <a href="Python_(programming_language)" title="Python (programming language)">Python</a> <a href="Programming_language" title="Programming language">programming language</a>.<a href="#cite_note-hitchhiker-1">[1]</a> Python code that aligns with these principles is often referred to as "Pythonic".<a href="#cite_note-:1-2">[2]</a>

<a href="Software_engineer" class="mw-redirect" title="Software engineer">Software engineer</a> <a href="Tim_Peters_(software_engineer)" title="Tim Peters (software engineer)">Tim Peters</a> wrote this set of principles and posted it on the Python <a href="Mailing_list" title="Mailing list">mailing list</a> in 1999.<a href="#cite_note-Peters_1999-06-04-3">[3]</a> Peters' list left open a 20th principle "for Guido to fill in", referring to <a href="Guido_van_Rossum" title="Guido van Rossum">Guido van Rossum</a>, the original author of the Python language. The vacancy for a 20th principle has not been filled.

Peters' Zen of Python was included as entry number 20 in the language's official <a href="Python_Enhancement_Proposal" class="mw-redirect" title="Python Enhancement Proposal">Python Enhancement Proposals</a> and was released into the <a href="Public_domain" title="Public domain">public domain</a>.<a href="#cite_note-pep20-4">[4]</a> It is also included as an <a href="Easter_egg_(software)" class="mw-redirect" title="Easter egg (software)">Easter egg</a> in the Python <a href="Interpreter_(computing)" title="Interpreter (computing)">interpreter</a>, where it can be displayed by entering <code class="mw-highlight mw-highlight-lang-python mw-content-ltr" dir="ltr">import this</code>.<a href="#cite_note-hitchhiker-1">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-pep20-4">[4]</a><a href="#cite_note-5">[a]</a>

In May 2020, Barry Warsaw (developer of <a href="GNU_Mailman" title="GNU Mailman">GNU Mailman</a>) used it as the lyrics to a song.<a href="#cite_note-6">[5]</a><a href="#cite_note-7">[6]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Principles">Principles</h2></div>

The principles are listed as follows:<a href="#cite_note-8">[b]</a>

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<ul><li>Beautiful is better than ugly.</li>

<li>Explicit is better than implicit.</li>

<li><a href="KISS_principle" title="KISS principle">Simple</a> is better than complex.</li>

<li>Complex is better than complicated.</li>

<li>Flat is better than <a href="Nesting_(computing)" title="Nesting (computing)">nested</a>.</li>

<li><a href="Minimalism#Design,_architecture,_and_spaces" title="Minimalism">Sparse</a> is better than dense.</li>

<li><a href="Computer_programming#Readability_of_source_code" title="Computer programming">Readability</a> counts.</li>

<li><a href="Edge_case" title="Edge case">Special cases</a> aren't special enough to break the rules.</li>

<li>Although <a href="Perfect_is_the_enemy_of_good" title="Perfect is the enemy of good">practicality</a> beats purity.</li>

<li>Errors should never pass silently.</li>

<li>Unless explicitly silenced.</li>

<li>In the face of <a href="Ambiguity_aversion" title="Ambiguity aversion">ambiguity</a>, refuse the temptation to guess.</li>

<li>There should be one-- and preferably only one --obvious way to do it.<a href="#cite_note-10">[c]</a></li>

<li>Although that way may not be obvious at first unless you're Dutch.</li>

<li>Now is better than never.</li>

<li>Although never is often better than right now.<a href="#cite_note-11">[d]</a></li>

<li>If the <a href="Implementation" title="Implementation">implementation</a> is hard to <a href="Rubber_duck_debugging" title="Rubber duck debugging">explain</a>, it's a bad idea.</li>

<li>If the implementation is easy to explain, it may be a good idea.</li>

<li><a href="Namespaces" class="mw-redirect" title="Namespaces">Namespaces</a> are one honking great idea – let's do more of those!</li></ul>

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<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Being_Pythonic">Being Pythonic</h2></div>

One of the principles, "There should be one-- and preferably only one --obvious way to do it", can be referenced as the "Pythonic" way.<a href="#cite_note-:0-12">[8]</a> The official definition of "Pythonic" is:<a href="#cite_note-:1-2">[2]</a><blockquote>An idea or piece of code which closely follows the most common idioms of the Python language, rather than implementing code using concepts common to other languages. For example, a common idiom in Python is to loop over all elements of an iterable using a <code>for</code> statement. Many other languages don’t have this type of construct, so people unfamiliar with Python sometimes use a numerical counter instead:

<div class="mw-highlight mw-highlight-lang-python mw-content-ltr" dir="ltr"><pre>for i in range(len(food)):

print(food[i])

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As opposed to the cleaner, Pythonic method:

<div class="mw-highlight mw-highlight-lang-python mw-content-ltr" dir="ltr"><pre>for piece in food:

print(piece)

</pre></div>

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Code that is difficult to understand or reads like a rough transcription from another programming language is called unpythonic.<a href="#cite_note-13">[9]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="In_practice">In practice</h2></div>

Since the release of the Zen of Python, there has been research done on its effectiveness and actual use among developers. Despite the difference in interpretation between beginners and experienced Python programmers, interviews among 13 Python programmers of varying skill show that the Zen of Python "positively influences the way developers write and talk about code".<a href="#cite_note-:0-12">[8]</a> Researchers extended this <a href="Case_study" title="Case study">case study</a> to explore the use of Python <a href="Programming_idiom" title="Programming idiom">idioms</a> on <a href="GitHub" title="GitHub">GitHub</a> repositories, and found that the usage of "Pythonic idioms"<a href="#cite_note-14">[e]</a> increased over time.<a href="#cite_note-15">[10]</a> Writing Python code that aligns with the Zen of Python may save <a href="Computer_memory" title="Computer memory">memory</a> and <a href="Execution_(computing)" title="Execution (computing)">run time</a> of Python programs.<a href="#cite_note-16">[11]</a> The desire to write in Pythonic code has led to <a href="Code_refactoring" title="Code refactoring">refactoring</a> tools to help programmers achieve this goal.<a href="#cite_note-17">[12]</a><a href="#cite_note-18">[13]</a>

<ul><li><a href="Convention_over_configuration" title="Convention over configuration">Convention over configuration</a></li>

<li><a href="There's_more_than_one_way_to_do_it" class="mw-redirect" title="There's more than one way to do it">There's more than one way to do it</a></li></ul>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Notes">Notes</h2></div>

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<li id="cite_note-5"><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a> The source code for the Zen of Python can be found <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://github.com/python/cpython/blob/main/Lib/this.py">on Github</a>.

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<li id="cite_note-8"><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a> Wikipedia links below are added for further reference and understanding, and were not explicitly linked in the Zen of Python

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<li id="cite_note-10"><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a> The formatting of the <a href="Dash" title="Dash">dashes</a> in this line and the final is purposely inconsistent, in reference to the varying formatting conventions.<a href="#cite_note-9">[7]</a>

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<li id="cite_note-11"><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a> In the interpreter easter egg, this is written as "Although never is often better than *right* now." This follows a longstanding convention of <a href="Plain_text" title="Plain text">plain-text</a> communication — in which common formatting features are often impossible — where <a href="Emphasis_(typography)" title="Emphasis (typography)">emphasis</a> is represented with asterisks.

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<li id="cite_note-14"><a href="#cite_ref-14">^</a> A list of their Pythonic idioms can be found here <a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="https://slimshadyiam.github.io/ZenYourPython/">https://slimshadyiam.github.io/ZenYourPython/</a>

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<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2></div>

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</style><cite id="CITEREFReitz2011–2019" class="citation web cs1">Reitz, Kenneth (2011–2019). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://docs.python-guide.org/en/latest/writing/style/#zen-of-python">"Code Style"</a>. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Python. § Zen of Python. Retrieved March 26, 2019.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-:1-2">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:1_2-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:1_2-1">b</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://docs.python.org/3/glossary.html#term-Pythonic">"Glossary"</a>. Python Documentation. Retrieved 2024-02-07.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-Peters_1999-06-04-3"><a href="#cite_ref-Peters_1999-06-04_3-0">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFPeters1999" class="citation web cs1"><a href="Tim_Peters_(software_engineer)" title="Tim Peters (software engineer)">Peters, Tim</a> (June 4, 1999). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://mail.python.org/pipermail/python-list/1999-June/001951.html">"The Python Way"</a>. <a href="Python_Software_Foundation" title="Python Software Foundation">Python Software Foundation</a>. Retrieved March 26, 2019.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-pep20-4">^ <a href="#cite_ref-pep20_4-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-pep20_4-1">b</a> <cite id="CITEREFPeters2004" class="citation web cs1">Peters, Tim (August 19, 2004). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0020/">"PEP 20—The Zen of Python"</a>. <a href="Python_Software_Foundation" title="Python Software Foundation">Python Software Foundation</a>. Retrieved March 26, 2019.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-6"><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFWarsaw2020" class="citation web cs1">Warsaw, Barry (10 May 2020). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://wefearchange.org/2020/05/zenofpython.rst.html">"The Zen of Python"</a>. We Fear Change. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200603010307/https://wefearchange.org/2020/05/zenofpython.rst.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2020-06-03.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-7"><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFWarsaw2020" class="citation audio-visual cs1">Warsaw, Barry (23 May 2020). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6G6dmVJy74">The Zen of Python</a>. <a href="YouTube" title="YouTube">YouTube</a>. The Zbwedicon. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/i6G6dmVJy74">Archived</a> from the original on 2021-12-11.</cite> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200603010403/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6G6dmVJy74">Archived</a> 2020-06-03 at the Wayback Machine

</li>

<li id="cite_note-9"><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://bugs.python.org/issue3364">"Issue 3364: An ortographical typo in Zen of Python text - Python tracker"</a>. Retrieved 2021-02-10.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-:0-12">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:0_12-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_12-1">b</a> <cite id="CITEREFAlexandruMerchantePanichellaProksch2018" class="citation book cs1">Alexandru, Carol V.; Merchante, José J.; Panichella, Sebastiano; Proksch, Sebastian; Gall, Harald C.; Robles, Gregorio (2018-10-24). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20240324015819/https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/156901/1/paper.pdf">"On the usage of pythonic idioms"</a> (PDF). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/156901/1/paper.pdf">Proceedings of the 2018 ACM SIGPLAN International Symposium on New Ideas, New Paradigms, and Reflections on Programming and Software</a> (PDF). Onward! 2018. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 1–11. <a href="Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1145%2F3276954.3276960">10.1145/3276954.3276960</a>. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-1-4503-6031-9</bdi>. <a href="OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/1362712424">1362712424</a>. <a href="S2CID_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="S2CID (identifier)">S2CID</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:53057358">53057358</a>. Archived from the original on 2024-03-24. Retrieved 2024-02-19.</cite><code class="cs1-code">{{cite book}}</code>: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

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<li id="cite_note-13"><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://docs.python-guide.org/writing/style">"Code Style – The Hitchhiker's Guide to Python"</a>. docs.python-guide.org. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210127154341/https://docs.python-guide.org/writing/style/">Archived</a> from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 20 January 2021.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-15"><a href="#cite_ref-15">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFFarooqZaytsev2021" class="citation book cs1">Farooq, Aamir; Zaytsev, Vadim (2021-11-22). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3486608.3486909">"There is more than one way to zen your Python"</a>. Proceedings of the 14th ACM SIGPLAN International Conference on Software Language Engineering. SLE 2021. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 68–82. <a href="Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1145%2F3486608.3486909">10.1145/3486608.3486909</a>. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-1-4503-9111-5</bdi>.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-16"><a href="#cite_ref-16">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFLeelapruteChinthanetWattanakriengkraiKula2022" class="citation book cs1">Leelaprute, Pattara; Chinthanet, Bodin; Wattanakriengkrai, Supatsara; Kula, Raula Gaikovina; Jaisri, Pongchai; Ishio, Takashi (2022-10-20). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1145/3524610.3527879">"Does coding in Pythonic zen peak performance?: Preliminary experiments of nine Pythonic idioms at scale"</a>. Proceedings of the 30th IEEE/ACM International Conference on Program Comprehension. ICPC '22. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery. pp. 575–579. <a href="Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1145%2F3524610.3527879">10.1145/3524610.3527879</a>. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-1-4503-9298-3</bdi>.</cite>

</li>

<li id="cite_note-17"><a href="#cite_ref-17">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFZhangXingXiaXu2022" class="citation cs2">Zhang, Zejun; Xing, Zhenchang; Xia, Xin; Xu, Xiwei; Zhu, Liming (2022-07-12), Making Python Code Idiomatic by Automatic Refactoring Non-Idiomatic Python Code with Pythonic Idioms, <a href="ArXiv_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ArXiv (identifier)">arXiv</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://arxiv.org/abs/2207.05613">2207.05613</a></cite>

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<li id="cite_note-18"><a href="#cite_ref-18">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFPhan-udomWattanakulSakulniwatRagkhitwetsagul2020" class="citation cs2">Phan-udom, Purit; Wattanakul, Naruedon; Sakulniwat, Tattiya; Ragkhitwetsagul, Chaiyong; Sunetnanta, Thanwadee; Choetkiertikul, Morakot; Kula, Raula Gaikovina (2020-09-05), Teddy: Automatic Recommendation of Pythonic Idiom Usage For Pull-Based Software Projects, <a href="ArXiv_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ArXiv (identifier)">arXiv</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.03302">2009.03302</a></cite>

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<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2></div>

<ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0020/">PEP20 on Python website</a></li>

<li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://pep20.org/">PEP 20 ~ The Zen of Python by Tim Peters</a></li></ul></div><div><div class="zim-footer">

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