Dylan

(DYnamic LANguage) An object-oriented programming language developed at Apple in the late 1980s with assistance from Harlequin Group plc, Carnegie Mellon University and others. Dylan was designed to provide the simplicity of Smalltalk with the efficiency of C++.

Apple later abandoned the project, but Harlequin continued development until 1999 when its parent, Global Graphics, Inc. turned the programming rights over to key Dylan developers who founded a company named Functional Objects, Inc. Supported and sold for a time as Functional Developer, the language's source code was eventually released to the community at large under an open source license. For more information and downloads, visit www.opendylan.org

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Welsh aquatic hero or sea demigod, the son of Arianrhod daughter of Dôn in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi; may carry the epithet Ail Ton, Eil Ton, Eil Tôn, Eilton, Eil Don [Welsh, son of wave] or Ail Mor [Welsh, son of the sea]. Described as dark, Dylan contrasts with his fair twin brother, Lleu Llawgyffes.

Arianrhod gives birth to Dylan immediately after stepping over Gwydion's magic wand. He takes to the sea as soon as he is baptized, and assumes the sea's nature; he can swim as well as any fish and no wave ever breaks under him. He is killed by a single blow from his uncle, Gofannon fab Dôn. The rising tide rises to avenge the killing; the roar of the tide at the mouth of the Conway River is thought to be the death-groan of Dylan. His name is also cited in the Book of Taliesin and the Triads. Learned speculation asserts that Dylan may be based on an independent sea-divinity whose story became associated with Lleu Llaw Gyffes. See also ENDIL. Dylan may have served as a model for the Arthurian figure Dyonas, the father of the beautiful Vivien/Vivian. ‘Dylan’ was an uncommon given name in Wales before the career of poet Dylan Thomas (1914–53).

Bibliography

• Studia Celtica, 24–5 (1989–90), 26–37

• Dylan (name), people named Dylan
• Dylan Thomas, Welsh poet
• Dylan — english drum'n'bass dj
• Dylan (play), a 1964 Broadway play about Dylan Thomas, written by Sidney Michaels
• Dylan (programming language), a language with Lisp-like semantics and ALGOL-like syntax
• Dylan Ail Don, a sea-god in Celtic mythology
• Dylan, a high-performance RAID storage system by Quantel
• Honda Dylan, a high-end 125cc Honda scooter in Vietnam
• a comic series by Sergio Bonelli Editore and its eponymous main character
• Bob Dylan, an American singer and songwriter
  • Dylan, a 1973 album
  • Dylan, a 2007 compilation album by Bob Dylan

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