Your First Program

Create a file called hello.rk:

func main() {
    println("Hello, Rask!")
}

Run it:

rask hello.rk

Output:

Hello, Rask!

What’s Happening?

• func main() is the program entry point
• println() is a builtin for printing with newline

Variables

Let’s try variables:

func main() {
    const name = "Rask"
    const year = 2025
    println(format("Hello from {} in {}!", name, year))
}

• const creates an immutable binding
• let creates a mutable binding (for values you’ll reassign)
• Types are inferred, but you can write them explicitly: const year: i64 = 2025

Functions

func greet(name: string) {
    println(format("Hello, {}!", name))
}

func main() {
    greet("World")
}

Functions that return values need explicit return:

func add(a: i32, b: i32) -> i32 {
    return a + b
}

func main() {
    const result = add(2, 3)
    println(format("2 + 3 = {}", result))
}

Next: Explore the Guide

Continue to Basic Syntax →