Skip to main content

​
function

Functions in Soul are declared with the soul keyword and are first-class citizens, meaning they can be assigned to variables, passed as arguments, and returned from other functions.

​
Basic Function Declaration

Functions are declared using the soul keyword followed by the function name and parameters: 
soul greet(name) {
    return "Hello, " + name
}

soul add(a, b) {
    return a + b
}

soul getCurrentTime() {
    return new Date()
}

​
Function Parameters

Functions can have zero or more parameters: 
// No parameters
soul sayHello() {
    return "Hello, World!"
}

// Single parameter
soul square(x) {
    return x * x
}

// Multiple parameters
soul calculateArea(width, height) {
    return width * height
}

​
Default Parameters

Functions can have default parameter values: 
soul greetWithDefault(name, greeting) {
    if (greeting == null) {
        greeting = "Hello"
    }
    return greeting + ", " + name
}

soul createUser(name, age, isActive) {
    if (age == null) {
        age = 0
    }
    if (isActive == null) {
        isActive = true
    }
    
    return {
        "name": name,
        "age": age,
        "isActive": isActive
    }
}

​
Function Return Values

Functions can return values using the return statement: 
soul multiply(x, y) {
    return x * y
}

soul isEven(number) {
    return number % 2 == 0
}

// Functions without explicit return return null
soul printMessage(msg) {
    println(msg)
    // Implicitly returns null
}

​
First-Class Functions

Functions can be assigned to variables and passed around: 
// Assign function to variable
calculate = soul(a, b) {
    return a + b
}

// Pass function as argument
soul applyOperation(fn, x, y) {
    return fn(x, y)
}

result = applyOperation(calculate, 5, 3)  // result = 8

​
Anonymous Functions

Functions can be created without names: 
// Anonymous function assigned to variable
square = soul(x) {
    return x * x
}

// Anonymous function as callback
numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
doubled = numbers.map(soul(n) {
    return n * 2
})

​
Higher-Order Functions

Functions that take other functions as parameters: 
soul forEach(array, callback) {
    for (item in array) {
        callback(item)
    }
}

soul filter(array, predicate) {
    result = []
    for (item in array) {
        if (predicate(item)) {
            result.push(item)
        }
    }
    return result
}

// Usage
numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
evenNumbers = filter(numbers, soul(n) {
    return n % 2 == 0
})

​
Closures

Functions can capture variables from their enclosing scope: 
soul createCounter() {
    count = 0
    return soul() {
        count = count + 1
        return count
    }
}

counter1 = createCounter()
counter2 = createCounter()

println(counter1())  // 1
println(counter1())  // 2
println(counter2())  // 1 (separate closure)

​
Function Scope

Functions create their own scope for variables: 
globalVar = "global"

soul testScope() {
    localVar = "local"
    println(globalVar)  // Accessible
    println(localVar)   // Accessible
}

testScope()
// println(localVar)  // Error: localVar not accessible outside function

​
Recursive Functions

Functions can call themselves: 
soul factorial(n) {
    if (n <= 1) {
        return 1
    }
    return n * factorial(n - 1)
}

soul fibonacci(n) {
    if (n <= 1) {
        return n
    }
    return fibonacci(n - 1) + fibonacci(n - 2)
}

println(factorial(5))   // 120
println(fibonacci(6))   // 8

​
Static Functions

Functions can be marked as static, typically used within classes: 
sanctuary MathUtils {
    static soul add(a, b) {
        return a + b
    }
    
    static soul multiply(a, b) {
        return a * b
    }
    
    static soul max(a, b) {
        return a > b ? a : b
    }
}

result = MathUtils.add(5, 3)        // 8
result = MathUtils.multiply(4, 6)   // 24
result = MathUtils.max(10, 7)       // 10

​
Async Functions

Functions can be declared as async for asynchronous operations: 
async soul fetchData(url) {
    response = await http.get(url)
    return response.json()
}

async soul processMultipleUrls(urls) {
    results = []
    for (url in urls) {
        data = await fetchData(url)
        results.push(data)
    }
    return results
}

// Usage
soul genesis() {
    data = await fetchData("https://api.example.com/data")
    println(data)
}

​
Function Expressions

Functions can be used as expressions: 
// Immediately invoked function expression (IIFE)
result = (soul(x) {
    return x * 2
})(5)  // result = 10

// Conditional function assignment
processor = isDebugMode ? 
    soul(data) { return debugProcess(data) } : 
    soul(data) { return normalProcess(data) }

​
Function with Variable Arguments

While not directly supported, you can handle variable arguments: 
soul sum() {
    total = 0
    args = arguments  // If supported
    for (arg in args) {
        total += arg
    }
    return total
}

// Alternative: pass an array
soul sumArray(numbers) {
    total = 0
    for (number in numbers) {
        total += number
    }
    return total
}

result = sumArray([1, 2, 3, 4, 5])  // 15

​
Function Composition

Combining functions to create new functionality: 
soul compose(f, g) {
    return soul(x) {
        return f(g(x))
    }
}

soul double(x) {
    return x * 2
}

soul addTen(x) {
    return x + 10
}

doubleAndAddTen = compose(addTen, double)
result = doubleAndAddTen(5)  // (5 * 2) + 10 = 20

​
Function Validation

Functions with input validation: 
soul divide(a, b) {
    if (b == 0) {
        throw("Division by zero")
    }
    return a / b
}

soul validateEmail(email) {
    if (email == null || email == "") {
        return false
    }
    return email.contains("@") && email.contains(".")
}

try {
    result = divide(10, 2)  // 5
    result = divide(10, 0)  // Throws error
} catch (error) {
    println("Error: " + error)
}

​
Best Practices

  1. Use descriptive names: calculateTotalPrice instead of calc
  2. Keep functions focused: Each function should do one thing well
  3. Use parameters instead of global variables: Makes functions more reusable
  4. Return meaningful values: Avoid functions that only have side effects
  5. Handle edge cases: Validate inputs and handle errors gracefully
// Good
soul calculateTax(amount, rate) {
    if (amount < 0 || rate < 0) {
        throw("Invalid input: amount and rate must be positive")
    }
    return amount * rate
}

// Better - with comprehensive validation
soul calculateTax(amount, rate) {
    if (amount == null || rate == null) {
        throw("Invalid input: amount and rate cannot be null")
    }
    
    if (typeof amount != "number" || typeof rate != "number") {
        throw("Invalid input: amount and rate must be numbers")
    }
    
    if (amount < 0 || rate < 0) {
        throw("Invalid input: amount and rate must be positive")
    }
    
    if (rate > 1) {
        throw("Invalid input: rate should be between 0 and 1")
    }
    
    return amount * rate
}
Functions are the building blocks of Soul applications, providing reusable, modular code that can be combined to create complex functionality.
⌘I