Kyna documentation

Kyna is a statically typed programming language with a native CLI, an inspectable compiler pipeline, and two execution paths: bytecode and a tree-walk compatibility engine.

Preview status

Kyna is under active development. Check the implementation status before using it in production.

Install

Install the current preview from the official npm organization:

npm install --global @kyna-language/cli@preview
ky --version

The installer supports macOS and Linux on x64/ARM64, and Windows on x64.

Use Bun or install directly

Allow Bun to run the checksum-verified native installation step:

bun add --global --trust @kyna-language/cli@preview

Install directly on macOS or Linux without Node.js:

curl -fsSL https://github.com/Up-to-code/Kyna/releases/download/v1.0.0-preview.3/install.sh | sh -s -- --channel preview --version 1.0.0-preview.3

Install directly with Windows PowerShell:

& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm 'https://github.com/Up-to-code/Kyna/releases/download/v1.0.0-preview.3/install.ps1'))) -Channel preview -Version 1.0.0-preview.3

The Bun package path currently requires Node.js 18+ for the command shim. The direct installers do not require Node.js.

First program

Create hello.kyna:

fn greet(name: str): str {
    return "Hello, " + name;
}

const language = "Kyna";
print(greet(language));

Run it:

ky run hello.kyna

Check it without executing:

ky check hello.kyna

Core ideas

Types are explicit when they matter

Kyna can infer simple types, while annotations document and enforce public contracts. Types are non-nullable by default; add ? when a value may be null.

var nickname: str? = null;

Mutability is visible

Use var for a binding that can change and const for one that cannot.

var attempts = 0;
attempts = attempts + 1;

const limit = 3;

Compiler stages are inspectable

The ky CLI exposes the compilation pipeline instead of hiding it:

Stage	Command
Tokens	ky tokens app.kyna
Syntax tree	ky ast app.kyna
Type checking	ky check app.kyna
HIR	ky hir app.kyna
MIR	ky mir app.kyna
Bytecode	ky bytecode app.kyna
Execution	ky run app.kyna

Choose your next step

Goal	Read
Install Kyna and create a project	Getting started
Learn the language in order	Language tour
Understand bindings and types	Variables and types
Organize multiple files	Modules and packages
Find exact language behavior	Language reference
Copy a complete pattern	Examples