Which of the following programming languages is NOT primarily known as an object oriented programming language?

Introduction / Context:
Object oriented programming languages support concepts such as classes, objects, inheritance, and polymorphism. Many popular modern languages are designed around these ideas, while some older languages follow a purely procedural style. This question asks you to identify which language in the list is not primarily known as an object oriented language in its basic and original form.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The options are Python, PASCAL, Java, and C++.
• We consider the original or most common version of each language, not every dialect.
• Python, Java, and C++ are widely used in object oriented programming.
• PASCAL originated as a structured procedural language used mainly for teaching programming.

Concept / Approach:
Java is designed from the ground up as an object oriented language where almost everything is part of a class. C++ extends the C language with classes, inheritance, and other object oriented features and is considered a multi paradigm language with strong object oriented support. Python is also a high level language where classes and objects are central, even though it supports multiple paradigms. PASCAL, in its original standardized form, is a procedural language intended to encourage good programming practices but does not include built in object oriented constructs. Later dialects such as Object Pascal exist, but the base language PASCAL is not object oriented.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that Java forces programmers to define classes for most constructs, which is characteristic of object oriented design.Step 2: Recognise that C++ and Python both support classes, inheritance, and polymorphism and are described as object oriented in documentation and textbooks.Step 3: Remember that classic PASCAL, as designed by Niklaus Wirth, is a procedural language focusing on structured programming and type safety.Step 4: Note that although there are object oriented extensions to PASCAL, they are usually referred to by specific names such as Object Pascal or Delphi.Step 5: Conclude that PASCAL, as listed, is not primarily known as an object oriented language, while the others are.

Verification / Alternative check:
Standard references for programming languages classify Java as an object oriented language, C++ as an object oriented and generic programming language, and Python as an interpreted object oriented language. PASCAL is grouped under structured or procedural languages. Course descriptions and textbooks for introductory programming often present PASCAL as a predecessor to modern languages, focusing on loops, conditionals, and procedures rather than classes and objects. This classification supports the answer.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Python is object oriented and allows you to define classes and create objects; it is frequently used in object oriented design. Java is strongly object oriented and was created to promote this paradigm. C++ is one of the classic object oriented languages used in systems and application development. Choosing any of these as not object oriented would contradict widely accepted descriptions of the languages.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates may have limited exposure to PASCAL and might think that any older language is object oriented because many modern languages are. Others may confuse Object Pascal with general PASCAL. For exam questions, treat PASCAL as a procedural language and recognise that Python, Java, and C++ all have full support for object oriented programming.

Final Answer:
The correct answer is PASCAL, because in its original and standard form it is a procedural, structured programming language rather than an object oriented one.