Is the computer language 'Erlang' related to the Chinese deity?

Question

Erlang Shen or Erlang is a Chinese deity who supposedly regulates floods, Erlang a computer language ideal for large volume applications. Is this just some kind of weird coincidence?

Lanai

Answer 1

Wikipedia says it's either a reference to Agner Krarup Erlang, or an abbreviation for Ericsson Language. Given that it was developed by a company based in Sweden, it's unlikely (though not impossible) that it's secretly a reference to a Chinese god.

Dieppe

Just love this site. Even a silly question like this gets answered in seconds! – Lanai

Historical Note: my profile says 'one day I will be able to edit other peoples posts'. ( I might change my profile one day!) – Lanai

Answer 2

The wiki article you linked to says

The name "Erlang", attributed to Bjarne Däcker, has been understood either as a reference to Danish mathematician and engineer Agner Krarup Erlang, or alternatively, as an abbreviation of "Ericsson Language".[1][3]

Afire

The mathematician Agner Krarup Erlang did important work on telephone network analysis and how to calculate network loads. – Coben