ITT: Language Design

If you had the time and will to create a new Language, what would it look like?

My attempt at a functional, yet object oriented language, without the retarded syntax of haskell and without the forced intendation of python:


import IO
import OS
import Text

// braces are only required when a function
// contains more than one statement
def printFmt $format ... = do
    IO.WriteStr OS.Stdout (Text.Format $format ...)


// you can define an explicit return type by appending
// ':<TYPE>' to the end of the argument list
def fib $x :int = do
{
    if $x > 3 then
    {
        return (fib (x - 1)) + (fib ($x - 2))
    }
    return 1
}

// just like in python, all class members are public
class App {
    var $name

    def App = do
        // the 'nothing' keyword works like the 'pass' keyword -
        // it does efficiently nothing, and immediately returns
        // the default value of the specified returntype.
        // example: if the function is returned as 'def foo :int',
        // the returned value is 0.
        nothing


    def setName $n = do
        // extra dollarsign is not needed when refering to
        // class members.
        // to add explicity, members have to be called through '$this'
        $this.name = $n

    def sayName = do
        printLn "name is {0}" $this.name
}

/*
    'var $num = 15' could be also written as

        def $num = 15

    since the last argument is returned on a function without
    type specifier.
*/
var $num = 15
printLn "fib({0}) = {1}\n" $num (fib $num)

>>1

Why can you do declare return types but not argument types? What the fuck is the point in declaring return types in the first place when your language isn't statically typed?

IHBT