ECMAScript
general-purpose programming language on which JavaScript and other languages are based
ECMAScript (; ES) is the standard for the JavaScript language, intended to ensure the interoperability of web pages across different web browsers. It is standardized by Ecma International's TC39 technical committee in the document ECMA-262, with i18n ("Intl") APIs standardized in the document ECMA-402.
ECMAScript is commonly used for client-side scripting on the World Wide Web, and is increasingly being used for server-side scripting and services using runtime environments such as Node.js, Deno and Bun.
The ECMAScript standard does not include any input/output (I/O), such as networking, storage, or graphics facilities. In practice, the web browser or other runtime system provides JavaScript APIs for I/O.
Standards
Ecma International's Technical Committee 39 publishes multiple standards defining JavaScript, formally known as ECMAScript. These include the language syntax, semantics, libraries, and complementary technologies that support the language. The standards are detailed below.
ECMAScript Language Specification (ECMA-262)
Defines the JavaScript language, formally known as ECMAScript. ECMA-262 only specifies language syntax and the semantics of the core application programming interface (API), such as Array, Function, and globalThis, while valid implementations of JavaScript add their own functionality such as input/output and file system handling.
ECMAScript Internationalization API Specification (ECMA-402)
Defines the JavaScript i18n (Intl) APIs, and is a complement to ECMA-262.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “ECMAScript” is general-purpose programming language on which JavaScript and other languages are based. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through ECMAScript, general-purpose and programming, not as a finished interpretation.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q259138. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “ECMAScript” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.