Java is a programming language and a platform. Java is a high level, robust, object-oriented and secure programming language.

Java was developed by Sun Microsystems (which is now the subsidiary of Oracle) in the year 1995. James Gosling is known as the father of Java. 

Java is one of the most popular programming languages used to create Web applications and platforms. It was designed for flexibility, allowing developers to write code that would run on any machine, regardless of architecture or platform. 

Java can be used to build applications for a wide range of platforms. Desktops, servers, mobile phones, tablets, Blu-ray players, televisions, and web browsers all use Java, and developers can write Java-based applications for any of these platforms.