Wiki is a collaborative software concept invented by Ward Cunningham in 1995. The first wiki, WikiWikiWeb, allowed users to create and edit web pages directly in their browser, revolutionizing collaborative knowledge sharing.
Origins
Cunningham created the WikiWikiWeb to complement the Portland Pattern Repository, allowing the software development community to collaboratively document design patterns. “Wiki wiki” means “quick” in Hawaiian.
Key Innovations
The wiki concept introduced:
- Browser editing: Anyone could edit pages without special tools
- WikiLinks: CamelCase words automatically became links
- Version history: Track and revert changes
- Collaborative ownership: No single author controls content
How It Works
Original wiki principles:
- Simple markup syntax (easier than HTML)
- Edit any page by clicking “Edit”
- Create new pages by linking to them
- Changes visible immediately
Wikipedia and Beyond
Wiki’s most famous descendant is Wikipedia (2001), which became the largest encyclopedia ever created. The wiki concept also influenced:
- Corporate knowledge bases (Confluence)
- Software documentation (GitHub wikis)
- Community collaboration platforms
- Note-taking tools (Notion, Obsidian)
Legacy
The wiki model demonstrated that collaborative, open editing could produce valuable content. It challenged assumptions about authorship and expertise, enabling collective intelligence at scale.