High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The term fourth-generation programming language (1970s-1990) (abbreviated 4GL) is better understood to be a fourth generation environment; packages of systems development software including very high level programming languages. A very high level programming language and a development environment or `Analyst Workbench` designed with a central data dictionary system, a library of loosely coupled design patterns, a CRUD generator, report generator, end-user query language, DBMS, visual design tool and integration API. Historically often used for prototyping and evolutionary development of commercial business software. In the history of computer science, the 4GL followed the 3GL in an upward trend toward higher abstraction and statement power. The 4GL was followed by efforts to define and use a 5GL.