Legacy programming languages, once thought to be relics of the past, are having a surprising comeback. This month, Fortran, Ada, COBOL, and Delphi all vying for positions in the TIOBE Index top 20. Takeaways from the March TIOBE rankings: Python: Recently named “TIOBE’s programming language of the year 2024” in January by TIOBE CEO Paul Jansen continues its meteoric rise. C++: Maintains its stronghold at second place on the leaderboard. Fortran and Delphi: Both legacy languages, are fighting for a spot in the top 10. COBOL and Ada: Both re-entered the top 20 this month. Ada, notably, was the third highest ranking language back in 1985. “I think that it (comeback) has to do with the many vital legacy systems that keep the world running,” Jansen said in the TIOBE Programming Community Index in March. “Most of them are developed with the aid of these dinosaur languages.” A shift in priorities: February vs. March This marks a noticeable shift from February’s rankings, which were dominated by speed-focused languages like C+ +, Go, and Rust. Jansen attributed that trend to the growing need …