ECMAScript
What it is?
ECMAScript (or ES) is a general-purpose programming language, standardized by Ecma International according to the document ECMA-262.
It is a JavaScript standard meant to ensure the interoperability of Web pages across different Web browsers.
ECMAScript is commonly used for client-side scripting on the World Wide Web, and it is increasingly being used for writing server applications and services using Node.js.
The names "JavaScript" and "ECMAScript" are essentially different names for the same thing.
ES Versions
Sometimes an ES version is referenced by edition number and sometimes by year, which adds to the general confusion around JS/ES.
Before ES2015, ECMAScript specifications were commonly called by their edition. So ES5 is the official name for the ECMAScript specification update published in 2009.
Why does this happen? During the process that led to ES2015, the name was changed from ES6 to ES2015, but since this was done late, people still referenced it as ES6.
This table should clear things a bit:
| Edition | Official name | Date published |
|---|---|---|
| ES11 | ES2020 | Summer 2020? |
| ES10 | ES2019 | Summer 2019 |
| ES9 | ES2018 | June 2018 |
| ES8 | ES2017 | June 2017 |
| ES7 | ES2016 | June 2016 |
| ES6 | ES2015 | June 2015 |
| ES5.1 | ES5.1 | June 2011 |
| ES5 | ES5 | December 2009 |
| ES4 | ES4 | Abandoned |
| ES3 | ES3 | December 1999 |
| ES2 | ES2 | June 1998 |
| ES1 | ES1 | June 1997 |
Quote
By reading the ECMAScript specification, you learn how to create a scripting language.
By reading the JavaScript documentation, you learn how to use a scripting language.
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