Why was the programming language COBOL so popular if it is so disliked?

COBOL gained popularity primarily due to historical factors rather than its inherent qualities. When it was developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, it was one of the few high-level programming languages available. Its design focused on readability, allowing business professionals to understand and write code.

During the 1960s and 1970s, COBOL became widely adopted in government, finance, and large corporations. It was instrumental in building critical systems for these industries, handling essential functions like banking transactions, payroll processing, and inventory management. Its verbosity and English-like syntax made it accessible for non-programmers, enabling collaboration between business analysts and programmers.

However, over time, the perception of COBOL shifted. Its verbosity, rigid structure, and limitations in handling modern programming paradigms led to criticisms. As newer, more flexible languages emerged, COBOL became associated with outdated systems, and its popularity declined among newer generations of programmers.

COBOL was popular in its time because it addressed the need for a business-oriented language that could handle large-scale data processing. It gained widespread adoption in the business and government sectors due to its readability and suitability for handling structured data. However, over time, as programming preferences evolved and new languages with more modern features emerged, COBOL became disliked for its perceived verbosity and lack of alignment with contemporary programming paradigms. Despite the dislike, many legacy systems still rely on COBOL, showcasing its historical significance.