I have often joked that my first language isn't English, as I'm more fluent in C. Truth be told, while I can't claim to be bilingual in any real sense (I understand some french, and have picked up only a few spanish words), I do pride myself in being a polyglot in that I know several computer languages. Of course, C is my core language, as I can claim consistent coding proficiency in it all the way back to my college years. But beyond that, I know quite a few other languages, including assembly, C++, and as of late, Objective-C.
Not only that, but on the languages that I have used but have since forgotten, I've made sure to remember a few of the design patterns from them. For example, the Eval/Apply loop used in Scheme's interpreter. There's an aphorism to the effect of "A language which doesn't change the way you think isn't worth learning." I'm a firm believer in the contrapositive: All languages worth learning will change the way you think.
With that in mind, it makes me really wonder and ponder about this list that was pointed to in this article.
Of course, not being fluent in Java, and wanting to break into the tiny world of Objective-C coding will heavily bias me against the list. At the same time, the list even acknowledges this major difference, emphasis theirs.
The ratings are based on the number of skilled engineers world-wide, courses and third party vendors. ... Observe that the TIOBE index is not about the best programming language or the language in which most lines of code have been written.This is simply a list of the languages mentioned the most in several forms. Which makes me wonder: How many times was one language on the list mentioned with another? That is, which languages were most popular among polyglots?
True, knowing several computer languages does not a good programmer make, nor should one ignore those who know a single language really well. But at the same time, knowing diverse languages does require a degree of flexibility, and knowing only a single language would make one blind to solutions outside their realm.
Furthermore, the gap between mediocre programmers and exceptional programmers is well known, and I would argue that a mediocre programmer is far more likely to be the 9-to-5er, the one who learned programming only for the money. They would flock to the most popular language and stick only to that one, since they're not interested in it outside their paycheck.
Here's the part where I venture into theories unknown. Because Objective-C, to the best of my knowledge, is not taught as a beginning language in colleges, and is almost completely unheard of in trade schools. Therefore, most if not nearly all Objective-C programmers learn it as a secondary or tertiary language and are by definition polyglots. And those who know only Objective-C would have to be ones who did so on their own, showing a natural drive to program.
I currently have no evidence to back up these assumptions, but if they're right, it means that nearly no Objective-C coders would be the 9-to-5er sort, having learned only one language. And while that doesn't guarantee good programming, it might imply improved chances, as fewer of the mediocre, paycheck-driven pool would be included.
