;(function() {})(); in JavaScript

Question

I am looking at a JavaScript file, and it is formatted as follows:

;(function() {

    // functions and stuff

})();

What does this mean, and what is this 'technique' called?

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/8228281/what-is-the-function-construct-in-javascript — Aᴍɪʀ, Jan 25 '17 at 19:07
I think everyone missed the fact that your example starts with a semicolon. This answer explains why: http://stackoverflow.com/a/1873999/1395510 — Liam Kenneth, Mar 20 '17 at 15:10

score 1 · Answer 1 · answered Jan 25 '17 at 19:06

1

answered Jan 25 '17 at 19:06

GMaiolo

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 25 '17 at 19:07

1

Its called Immediately-Invoked Function Expressions (IIFEs) like

// variant 1

(function () {
  alert('Woohoo!');
})();

// variant 2

(function () {
  alert('Woohoo!');
}());

You can read more about it here

answered Jan 25 '17 at 19:07

Ali Baig

score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Jan 25 '17 at 19:06

This is an anonymous self-executing function.

3 Answers3