[cooljoseph]

I was having some difficulty figuring out how Hy actually is translated to Python (and wasn't even sure if it was compiled or interpreted). Eventually I found on Wikipedia the following: > Hy is a dialect of the Lisp programming language designed to interact with Python by translating s-expressions into Python's abstract syntax tree (AST).

Also, looking at the code on Github suggests this compiler is written in Python (see https://github.com/hylang/hy/blob/master/hy/compiler.py).

I kind of wish this was made more clear on the main website. Perhaps, instead of introducing Hy as "a Lisp dialect that's embedded in Python", introduce it as "a Lisp dialect that compiles to Python's AST". The words "embedded in Python" don't make it very clear just how it's embedded into Python. The various ways you can embed a Lisp look very different and have very different tradeoffs.

For example, off the top of my head, I could "embed" a Lisp by writing an interpreter (in C if I care about performance) and letting it be called from Python, perhaps passing in a Python list instead of a string to make it more "native". Or I could "embed" a Lisp by compiling to Python bytecode. Or I could "embed" a Lisp by translating it directly to Python source code. Etc.

Regardless, interesting project!

[wodenokoto]

From the readme / github page:

> Hy is a Lisp dialect that's embedded in Python. Since Hy transforms its Lisp code into Python abstract syntax tree (AST) objects, you have the whole beautiful world of Python at your fingertips, in Lisp form.

[Kodiologist]

> this compiler is written in Python

Yes, that's right. Hy is not self-hosted.

> The various ways you can embed a Lisp look very different and have very different tradeoffs.

Hy itself provides options. Typically the process is that the Hy source code becomes Python AST objects, which Python then complies and executes, but you can also translate the Python AST objects into Python source text. Or you can use Python from Hy or vice versa: https://hylang.org/hy/doc/v1.0.0/interop

[rcarmo]

The "embed" part stems from the fact that you can mix Python and Hy in a project with bi-directional calling. Works great, because it is all Python byte code in the end.

[PuercoPop]

The original hy annoucement makes it clear that they embed a Lisp by compiling with Python bytecode. You can see it in the following video about the 16:25 mark

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1vui-LupKJI

[Foxboron]

and for those interested in history, Docker was first announced 10 minutes afterwards on the 26:24 mark.

[Slackwise]

The actual statement in the video is:

> ...because this is a frontend like LLVM or GCC that compiles instead of bytecode, uh, to Python AST, um, so this Lisp compiles entirely to Python

@ https://youtu.be/1vui-LupKJI?t=1020