JSON
Technology & Computing abbreviation · Programming
| Stands for | JavaScript Object Notation |
|---|---|
| Categories | Technology & Computing |
JSON stands for JavaScript Object Notation, a programming abbreviation.
A lightweight text format for structured data built from objects in curly braces, arrays in square brackets, strings, numbers, booleans and null. It is the default format for web APIs, configuration files and data exchange because people can read it and every major language can parse it.
Example: The endpoint returns JSON like {"id": 42, "status": "shipped"}, so parse it before reading the status.
Usage notes
Specified by Douglas Crockford in the early 2000s, who said he "discovered" rather than invented it because it was already a subset of JavaScript syntax; it is standardized as ECMA-404 and RFC 8259. JSON allows no comments, no trailing commas and has no date type, which led to variants such as JSON5. Keys must be double-quoted strings. Usually pronounced like the name "Jason". It largely replaced XML for web APIs in the late 2000s.
Related abbreviations
More programming abbreviations
- IoC – Inversion of control
- IPC – Inter-process communication
- J2EE – Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition
- JDK – Java Development Kit
- JIT – Just-in-time
- JRE – Java Runtime Environment
- JVM – Java Virtual Machine
- KISS – Keep it simple, stupid
- l10n – Localization
- LGTM – Looks good to me
- LIFO – Last in, first out
- LINQ – Language Integrated Query