What is JSX in React?

JSX is a syntax extension for JavaScript that allows developers to write HTML-like code in their JavaScript files. It is a way to describe the structure of the UI components in a more declarative way. JSX is not a requirement for React, but it is a popular choice because it makes the code more readable and easier to maintain. JSX is compiled into regular JavaScript code by a transpiler like Babel before it is executed in the browser.

JSX allows developers to write HTML-like code in their JavaScript files. For example, instead of creating a new DOM element with document.createElement(), we can use JSX to create a new React component. Here is an example of a simple React component written in JSX:

class MyComponent extends React.Component {
  render() {
    return (
      <div className="my-component">
        <h1>Hello, World!</h1>
        <p>This is my first React component.</p>
      </div>
    );
  }
}

In this example, we define a new React component called MyComponent. The render() method returns a JSX expression that describes the structure of the component. The className attribute is used instead of the class attribute to avoid conflicts with the class keyword in JavaScript. The curly braces are used to embed JavaScript expressions inside the JSX code. In this case, we are embedding a string literal inside the h1 element.

JSX is a powerful tool that makes it easier to write and maintain React components. It allows developers to write HTML-like code in their JavaScript files, which makes the code more readable and easier to understand. JSX is not a requirement for React, but it is a popular choice because it simplifies the process of creating and managing UI components.