Metacompiler

A metacompiler is a software development tool used chiefly in the construction of compilers, translators, and interpreters for other programming languages. They are a subset of a specialized class of compiler writing tools called compiler-compilers that employ metaprogramming languages. Metaprogramming is the writing of computer programs with the ability to treat programs as their data. The input to a metacompiler is a metaprogram written in a specialized metalanguage designed chiefly for the purpose of constructing compilers. The language of the compiler produced is called the object language. The minimal input producing a compiler is a metaprogram specifying the object language grammar and semantic transformations into an object program.