AWK is a powerful programming language designed for text processing and data extraction. It is commonly used in Unix-like operating systems and is particularly effective for handling structured data, such as CSV files. With its simple syntax, users can easily write scripts to search, manipulate, and report on data from text files. The name AWK comes from the initials of its creators: Alfred Aho, Peter Weinberger, and Brian Kernighan. This language allows users to perform tasks like filtering rows, calculating sums, and formatting output, making it a valuable tool for system administrators, data analysts, and anyone working with text data.