Parse Java source with Scala

Question

I am working on a static analysis tool and I need to work with Java source code and I'd like to write my code in Scala so that I can benefit from its functional features.

Is there any easy way to parse Java source code and have an Abstract Syntax Tree with Scala? I thought at using some existing Java parsers written in Java but I wanted to make sure that I'm not missing some cool Scala library

I would not say it will be easy to create a tool for analyzing Java source code at a semantic level. There's far more to it than parsing, for one thing. — Randall Schulz
– Randall Schulz, Commented Mar 28, 2013 at 15:44
The point is that an Abstract Syntax Tree is not purely syntactic. It cannot be built properly without creating a proper symbol table for program, and this is effectively a global analysis. With separate compilation, the information comes either from analyzing source files or from .class files. — Randall Schulz
– Randall Schulz, Commented Mar 28, 2013 at 16:01
If you want to accept huge amounts of non-Java (Java look-alike) code, perhaps. — Randall Schulz
– Randall Schulz, Commented Mar 28, 2013 at 16:09

Ira Baxter · Accepted Answer · 2013-03-28 15:59:40Z

1

I thought Scala could call Java libraries.

You should be able to call any Java-implemented Java parser (e.g., ANTLR). That way you get a mature parser.

answered Mar 28, 2013 at 15:59

Ira Baxter

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2 Comments

Randall Schulz Over a year ago

In doing a little background study on this question, I came across a Java analysis tool written with ANTLR. That would surely be a better starting point than a blank slate! It is described here: svn.apache.org/repos/asf/maven/sandbox/trunk/jxr/maven-jxr/…

mariosangiorgio Over a year ago

Yes, Scala can call Java libraries, as I reported in the question. I was just wondering if there is anything "better".

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