I've noticed names like Java, Jakarta, and Lombok throughout the Java ecosystem. Is there a particular reason so many programming tools and projects use Indonesian place names, or is it mostly coincidence?
3 Answers
Some of the names have specific backstories, though not all of them are official parts of one grand naming scheme. Java’s name led to associations with coffee and Indonesia, and later project authors often chose names that fit that established ecosystem. Other projects may simply use an Indonesian name because it sounds distinctive.
Once Java became established, developers started extending the theme. Jakarta, Lombok, and projects such as Sumatra and Batik use Indonesian references, while other tools use coffee terms like Bean, Caffeine, Espresso, or Corretto. It’s basically a naming tradition rather than a technical requirement.
It started with Java itself. Java is an island in Indonesia, and “java” was also a common nickname for coffee because Java was historically associated with coffee production. The language’s original name was Oak, but that name couldn’t be used, so the team settled on Java. From there, Indonesian and coffee-related naming became a recurring theme.
The exact naming story is a little fuzzy, but the coffee connection is much better supported than the idea that Java is an acronym.
Lombok also means “chili” in Indonesian, which makes the name a nice bit of wordplay for a Java library.