RX-wiki

Reduced Axiom Language

A Reduced Axiom Set Language or Minimal Axiom System Lang, is a lang that’s specified in terms of a minimal (not necessarily the absolute minimum) amount of simple axioms. Such langs tend to define most of their features as part of their core/standard libraries, rather than being opaque implementations embedded in the grammar.

Another definition is that these langs have an axiom-to-construct ratio very close to 0, implying they have many concepts derived from a small set of axioms.

Examples

• λ-C. This is the “textbook definition” of a RASL. Nothing can beat it.
• Hackett
• 🦀Rs: Tris explains it better than me (video)
• Gleam: Bool
• Ada
• FlipJump

Non-examples

• JavaScript/TypeScript and CoffeeScript. The lang is complex and its std-lib is “anemic”.
• Python
• Java (I guess?)
• brainfuck. Yes, it’s a tur-tar, but it has many unnecessary operators.

Criticism

The concept of RASL is fuzzy and context-sensitive, and thereby open to interpretation. Even I have no idea what it is 💀