Active

Ruby implementations:

• Ruby MRI - Matz's Ruby Interpreter or Ruby MRI (also called CRuby) is the reference implementation of the Ruby programming language.
• TruffleRuby - A high performance implementation. Built on the GraalVM by Oracle Labs.
• JRuby - The Ruby Programming Language on the JVM.
• mruby - mruby is the lightweight implementation of the Ruby language.
• Opal - Opal is a Ruby to Javascript source-to-source compiler.
• GoRuby - An implementation of Ruby written in Go.
• grubby - Grubby is an experimental ruby written in Golang.
• Rubinius - Rubinius is a modern language platform that supports a number of programming languages.
• Topaz - A high performance ruby, written in RPython
• Ruby-LLVM - Ruby-LLVM is a Ruby language binding to the LLVM compiler infrastructure library.
• erruby - ruby on erlang.
• Artichoke - Bundle Ruby applications into a single WASM binary, Ruby implementation in Rust.
• Natalie - Ruby to C++ compiler.

Ruby-inspired languages:

• goby - Goby is an object-oriented interpreter language deeply inspired by Ruby as well as its core implementation by 100% pure Go.
• Crystal - A typed and compiled language using Ruby-like syntax and allowing C-bindings.

Dead Projects

links available

• MacRuby - MacRuby is an implementation of Ruby 1.9 directly on top of Mac OS X core technologies such as the Objective-C runtime and garbage collector, the LLVM compiler infrastructure and the Foundation and ICU frameworks.
• rubydium - (description unavailable)
• ocelot - Caleb Clausen's type-inducting ruby-to-c converter.
• mirb - A simple fast Ruby implementation.
• verneuil - Artificial Rubies. Using a fusion process.
• Blue Ruby - An experimental runtime environment for the programming language Ruby that runs inside the ABAP Virtual Machine.
• Ruby.NET - (article)
• RubyGoLightly - An experimental port of TinyRb to Google go, both as a means of learning go and exploring alternate approaches to implementing Ruby. Work is currently focused on the GoLightly VM.
• IronRuby - IronRuby is a Open Source implementation of the Ruby programming language for .NET and Silverlight, heavily relying on Microsoft's Dynamic Language Runtime.
• XRuby - XRuby is the first Ruby to Java compiler which compiles Ruby source code (.rb) to Java bytecode (.class). The parser is implemented in ANTLR, and we use ASM to emit java bytecode.
• MetaRuby - Metaruby intends to implement ruby’s internals in ruby itself. Its implementation will use ruby2c to convert itself to C and bootstrap a new ruby binary. Metaruby should be fully compatible w/ Matz’s ruby.
  • ruby2c - ruby2c is a subset of the metaruby project, which aims at rewriting ruby's internals in ruby. ruby2c is the translation module and can automatically translate a method into equivalent C code for a subset of ruby. Very BETA, but making rapid progress.
• ludicrous - Ludicrous is a just-in-time compiler for Ruby 1.8 and 1.9. Though still in the experimental stage, its performance is roughly on par with YARV (better in some benchmarks, though that may change as more features are added).
• Fructose - A Ruby-like language that compiles to PHP.
• REE - Ruby Enterprise Edition.
  • Kiji - Twitter's updates to Ruby Enterprise Edition, itself based on MRI 1.8.7-p248.
• Carbone - Carbone is a vmgen based, efficient virtual machine for Ruby. It targets compatibility, performance and portability.
• ByteCodeRuby - A bytecode interpreter for Ruby.
• MagLev - MagLev is a fast, stable, 64-bit open source implementation of the Ruby programming language and libraries built on top of VMware’s GemStone/S 3.1 Virtual Machine.
• ruby2smalltalk - Translates ruby to smalltalk using ParseTree.
• tinyrb - A tiny subset of Ruby with a Lua'esc VM.
• SmallRuby - SmallRuby is an implementation of Ruby programming language for Smalltalk/X virtual machine.
• Red - Red writes like Ruby and runs like JavaScript.
• RubyScript - A Ruby VM implemented in JavaScript.
• Cardinal - Cardinal is a Ruby compiler for Parrot Virtual Machine.
• Quby - Ruby-like language that compiles to JavaScript.
• NETRuby - The programing language Ruby on the .NET.
• sri-ruby - This is a research experiment, not to be used for anything serious. It's (part of) a Ruby interpreter, written in Ruby, using ParseTree.
• unholy - Compile Ruby to Python bytecode.
• rubyex - A Ruby VM/interpreter, written in C++.
• goruby - Ruby interpreter (golf code).
• jsruby - Ruby Virtual Machine using node.js.
• rbv8 - A Ruby VM running on Google V8 super VM.
• 8ball - a Ruby-to-Javascript source-to-source transformer.
• HotRuby - HotRuby is Ruby on JavaScript and Flash. HotRuby runs Ruby source code on a web browser and Flash.
  • hrwt - Ruby VM on JavaScript (based on HotRuby) + RPC.
• ColdRuby - ColdRuby is a compiler of Ruby 1.9 MRI bytecode, and a runtime written in JavaScript to aid in execution of Ruby code.
• Red Sun - Red Sun - Ruby to Flash compiler and framework.
• emscripted-ruby - Ruby 1.8.7 compiled to JavaScript.

web archived

• Alumina - (description unavailable)
• rb2js - Ruby to JavaScript.
  • RubyJS - A successor to rb2js.
• RubySharp - A Ruby to CIL Compiler.

r.i.p.

Description and link unavailable:

• msakai's VM
• asruby
• ruby2perl
• IoRuby
• Sapphire
• ruby2lisp