History

We’ve been working on a new book about the history of WordPress drawing on dozens of interviews with the original folks involved and extensive research. It’s not ready yet, but for the tenth anniversary of WordPress we’d like to make a chapter available, On forking WordPress, forks in general, early WordPress, and the community, which you can download below in the following formats:

Jazzers and Release Dates

WordPress core developers share a love of jazz music, and all our major releases are named in honor of jazz musicians we personally admire. Here’s a list of releases and the musicians they were named for. You can listen to a Last.fm station of all the musicians we named a release for.

Version Musician Date
5.8 Art Tatum July 20, 2021
5.7 Esperanza Spalding March 9, 2021
5.6 Nina Simone December 8, 2020
5.5 Billy Eckstine August 11, 2020
5.4 Nat Adderley March 31, 2020
5.3 Rahsaan Roland Kirk November 12, 2019
5.2 Jaco Pastorius May 7, 2019
5.1 Betty Carter February 21, 2019
5.0 Bebo Valdés December 6, 2018
4.9 Billy Tipton November 15, 2017
4.8 Bill Evans June 8, 2017
4.7 Sarah Vaughan December 6, 2016
4.6 Pepper Adams August 16, 2016
4.5 Coleman Hawkins April 12, 2016
4.4 Clifford Brown December 8, 2015
4.3 Billie Holiday August 18, 2015
4.2 Bud Powell April 23, 2015
4.1 Dinah Washington December 18, 2014
4.0 Benny Goodman September 4, 2014
3.9 Jimmy Smith April 16, 2014
3.8 Charlie Parker December 12, 2013
3.7 Count Basie October 24, 2013
3.6 Oscar Peterson August 1, 2013
3.5 Elvin Jones December 11, 2012
3.4 Grant Green June 13, 2012
3.3 Sonny Stitt December 12, 2011
3.2 George Gershwin July 4, 2011
3.1 Django Reinhardt February 23, 2011
3.0 Thelonious Monk June 17, 2010
2.9 Carmen McRae December 18, 2009
2.8 Chet Baker June 11, 2009
2.7 John Coltrane December 10, 2008
2.6 McCoy Tyner July 15, 2008
2.5 Michael Brecker March 29, 2008
2.3 Dexter Gordon September 24, 2007
2.2 Stan Getz May 16, 2007
2.1 Ella Fitzgerald January 22, 2007
2.0 Duke Ellington December 31, 2005
1.5 Billy Strayhorn February 17, 2005
1.2 Charles Mingus May 22, 2004
1.0 Miles Davis January 3, 2004
.70 No musician chosen. May 27, 2003