PHP, or Hypertext Preprocessor, has come a long way since its humble beginnings as a personal project by Danish-Canadian programmer Rasmus Lerdorf in 1994. Originally created as a simple tool for tracking visits on his personal website, PHP quickly evolved into a server-side scripting language that revolutionized the world of web development. Its simple and user-friendly syntax, combined with its ability to generate dynamic web pages, made it a popular choice for developers and businesses alike. As its popularity grew, PHP underwent multiple revisions and updates, with version 3 being the first to include support for object-oriented programming. This opened up new possibilities for developers and allowed them to create more complex and powerful web applications. However, it wasn’t until the release of PHP 4 in 2000 that the language truly took off. With the addition of a new engine, PHP became faster and more efficient, making it a top choice for building dynamic websites and web applications. This, coupled with the fact that it was open-source and free to use, made PHP an attractive option for businesses looking to cut costs on their web development projects. The rise of popular content management systems like WordPress and Drupal, both built on PHP, also contributed to the language’s widespread adoption. As PHP continued to evolve, new features and improvements were added with each new version, making it even more versatile and powerful. Today, PHP is one of the most widely-used programming languages, powering over 70% of all websites on the internet. Its evolution from a personal project to a dominant force in the world of web development is a testament to its flexibility and adaptability. With its continued development and updates, PHP is set to remain a top choice for developers for years to come.