The Evolution of JavaScript: Key Features from ECMAScript (ES) Versions

Back in 2001, I wrote my first lines of JavaScript while working on an e-commerce product. At the time, JavaScript was mostly used for simple tasks — validating forms, creating basic interactions, and adding a little bit of dynamic behavior to web pages. Since then, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing the beautiful evolution of JavaScript and its underlying standard, ECMAScript. Over the years, the language has transformed from a simple scripting tool into a powerful, feature-rich programming language that enables developers to be more productive and build complex applications with ease. This journey of evolution, from its humble beginnings to the modern, robust JavaScript we know today, is truly remarkable.

JavaScript has come a long way since its inception, evolving through multiple versions of ECMAScript (ES), which is the official standard for the language. Each ECMAScript version brings new features that make the language more powerful and developer-friendly. This post will take you on a journey through the evolution of ECMAScript, with examples of the most important features added in each version.

ES1 (ECMAScript 1) — 1997: Basic JavaScript

• Key Feature: Basic structure of JavaScript with variables, conditionals, loops, and functions.