Dennis Ritchie at Bell Labs created the general-purpose, high-level programming language C in the early 1970s. It is a procedural programming language, which implies that it approaches issues in a step-by-step fashion.

Pointers, which are variables that store the memory address of another variable, are one of the main characteristics of the C programming language. This enables strong memory manipulation and may result in more effective programming. The language becomes more difficult to learn and sophisticated as a result, though.

Low-level access to system resources like memory and I/O devices is another characteristic of C. Because of this, system-level programming, including operating systems and device drivers, frequently uses it. It also lessens its suitability for sophisticated, user-friendly applications.

There are numerous libraries and frameworks available to extend the capability of C, which has a sizable and active user base. It also serves as the foundation for C++ and C#, among other programming languages.

A text editor like Sublime or Atom and a compiler like GCC are required to start programming in C. It also helps to have a fundamental understanding of computer science fundamentals like algorithms and data structures.

You can start by reading a book like “The C Programming Language” by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie or enrolling in an online course to learn more about C. You can improve your proficiency by building practise programmes and playing around with different language features.