What are the key milestones in Linux history?
The story runs Unix (1970) → GNU (1983) → Linux kernel (1991) → distributions and world domination — each step answering a gap the previous one left.
The timeline tells a cause-and-effect story, not just dates. Unix proved the model but went proprietary, which provoked GNU; GNU built the tools but lacked a kernel, which is the gap Linux filled; once kernel + tools + the GPL existed, distributions could package it for ordinary users.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1970 | Unix created at AT&T |
| 1979 | Unix turns proprietary — source no longer freely shared |
| 1983 | Stallman launches GNU to build a free Unix |
| 1989 | The GPL license is written |
| 1991 | Torvalds announces the Linux kernel (Aug 25) |
| 1992 | Linux re-licensed under the GPL — the pieces unite |
| 1993 | Slackware and Debian, the first lasting distros |
| 1994 | Linux 1.0 (networking, GUI support) |
| 1996 | Linux 2.0 adds multi-processor support |
| 2008 | Android ships, built on the Linux kernel |
| 2016 | Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) arrives |
Why 1992 is the hinge: putting Linux under the GPL is what legally welded it to the GNU tools and guaranteed it would stay free — that single choice enabled the explosion of distributions that followed.
Mnemonic: "83-89-91" = GNU started, GPL written, Linux born.
Go deeper:
History of Linux (Wikipedia) — the Unix→GNU→kernel→GPL→distros timeline (1991, 1992 GPL, 1.0, 2.0, Android).