Converting Python code to Fortran code

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My list of Fortran tools has a section on Translation to Fortran, where pyccel is mentioned. The Readme says

Pyccel stands for Python extension language using accelerators.

The aim of Pyccel is to provide a simple way to generate automatically, parallel low level code. The main uses would be:

  1. Convert a Python code (or project) into a Fortran or C code.
  2. Accelerate Python functions by converting them to Fortran or C functions.

Pyccel can be viewed as:

  • Python-to-Fortran/C converter
  • a compiler for a Domain Specific Language with Python syntax

Pyccel comes with a selection of extensions allowing you to convert calls to some specific python packages to Fortran/C. The following packages will be covered (partially):

  • numpy
  • scipy
  • mpi4py (not available yet)
  • h5py (not available yet)

Pyccel’s acceleration capabilities lead to much faster code. A small speed comparison of python vs pyccel or other tools can be found in the performance file.

I wrote about it in a December 2020 thread Translating Python to Fortran with pyccel – it has become more capable since then. Pyccel is an active project with numerous contributors. It would be great if translation to Fortran became a standard way of speeding up Python code, especially scientific code. If many Fortranners tried it and gave feedback to the Pyccel developers, that would benefit both the scientific Python and Fortran communities. They were responsive to a few issues I raised.

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