Learn ELVISH with Real Code Examples

Elvish provides a powerful, object-oriented command pipeline system.

It supports structured data types like lists, maps, and records in pipelines.

Ideal for interactive shell use, scripting, and automation on Unix-like systems.

Pipeline-based data processing

Variables, functions, and closures

Modules and package management

Structured data types (list, map, record)

Interactive REPL with autocomplete

Variables and assignments

Lists, maps, and records

Functions and closures

Pipeline syntax and data flow

Modules and namespaces

scripts/ - main Elvish scripts

modules/ - reusable modules

tests/ - validation scripts

docs/ - documentation and usage notes

configs/ - shell configuration files

Write scripts (.elv files) using structured pipelines

Test interactively in REPL

Use modules for reusable functionality

Debug with built-in debugging tools

Deploy scripts for automation or command-line tasks

Beginner: simple shell scripts and variable manipulation

Intermediate: pipelines with lists/maps

Advanced: modules and closures

Expert: custom extensions and automation frameworks

System automation and interactive command-line tools

More modern than Bash/Zsh for structured data

Supports object-like pipelines

Smaller ecosystem than traditional shells

Easier to learn for modern scripting tasks

Better for modular and interactive workflows

2014 – Elvish created by Jeffrey Shu

2015–2017 – Early development and stable release

2018 – Modules and advanced pipeline features introduced

2020s – Ongoing improvements, community growth

2025 – Current stable version with REPL and modules fully supported

Pipeline: sequence of commands with structured data

Closure: function with bound variables

Module: reusable script unit

Namespace: context for variables/functions

REPL: interactive read-eval-print loop