Rise of GNU Project

Richard Stallman wanted to create a free software alternative to Unix. He worked with some other developers in 1984 to create a full operating system that would be free. So they started working on the GNU project.

At same time, another developer called Linus Torvalds was creating his own kernel known as Linux. At that time, many GNU pieces were completed but they lacked a kernel. Torvalds combined his kernel with the existing GNU components to create a full OS.

Some developers strongly feel that the name should be GNU/Linux instead of just Linux, as it reflects the joining of the Linux kernel with the GNU project.