GNU Info

(elisp)Introduction

---

Next: Lisp Data Types Prev: Top Up: Top

---

Enter node , (file) or (file)node

Introduction
************

   Most of the GNU Emacs text editor is written in the programming
language called Emacs Lisp.  You can write new code in Emacs Lisp and
install it as an extension to the editor.  However, Emacs Lisp is more
than a mere "extension language"; it is a full computer programming
language in its own right.  You can use it as you would any other
programming language.

   Because Emacs Lisp is designed for use in an editor, it has special
features for scanning and parsing text as well as features for handling
files, buffers, displays, subprocesses, and so on.  Emacs Lisp is
closely integrated with the editing facilities; thus, editing commands
are functions that can also conveniently be called from Lisp programs,
and parameters for customization are ordinary Lisp variables.

   This manual attempts to be a full description of Emacs Lisp.  For a
beginner's introduction to Emacs Lisp, see `An Introduction to Emacs
Lisp Programming', by Bob Chassell, also published by the Free Software
Foundation.  This manual presumes considerable familiarity with the use
of Emacs for editing; see `The GNU Emacs Manual' for this basic
information.

   Generally speaking, the earlier chapters describe features of Emacs
Lisp that have counterparts in many programming languages, and later
chapters describe features that are peculiar to Emacs Lisp or relate
specifically to editing.

   This is edition 2.7.

Caveats

Flaws and a request for help.

Lisp History

Emacs Lisp is descended from Maclisp.

Conventions

How the manual is formatted.

Version Info

Which Emacs version is running?

Acknowledgements

The authors, editors, and sponsors of this manual.