Self
Prototype-based object-oriented language that pioneered JIT compilation and influenced JavaScript's prototype model.
dynamic
jit
since 1987
oopprototype-based
Self pioneered prototype-based OOP, where objects are cloned and modified rather than instantiated from classes — an approach JavaScript later adopted. The Self VM pioneered adaptive optimisation and polymorphic inline caching, JIT techniques that became the foundation of modern JavaScript engines like V8 and SpiderMonkey. It remains an influential research language.