2004 seems really late for the inception (or possibly formalisation)
of Domain Specific Language, I assume that you're talking specifically
about embedded (also called internal) DSLs, otherwise SQL at least is
from 1986.
As an earlier example of an Embedded DSL, the book PAIP[1] included
prolog embedded in common lisp in 1992.
It could be argued that the loop macro in Common Lisp is a DSL for
describing iteration. If not loop, then certainly regular expressions
are a common EDSL for describing a regular language, and performing
operations with those languages against strings?
I found this snippet from Computers in Crisis [2] which
seems to describe domain-specific languages in familiar terms from
1975
Most domain-specific programming languages can be categorized in one
of two ways; either as a "sugared" general ... of programming, in
fact the style of problem solving, embedded in and supported by that
language remains unchanged.
As an earlier example of an Embedded DSL, the book PAIP[1] included prolog embedded in common lisp in 1992.
It could be argued that the loop macro in Common Lisp is a DSL for describing iteration. If not loop, then certainly regular expressions are a common EDSL for describing a regular language, and performing operations with those languages against strings?
I found this snippet from Computers in Crisis [2] which seems to describe domain-specific languages in familiar terms from 1975
[1] http://www.norvig.com/paip/README.html [2] http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=QndQAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Embedde...