1.**Origins**: Linux began as a personal project by Linus Torvalds, a Finnish student, in 1991. He aimed to create a free operating system kernel¹.
2.**Unix Influence**: The development of Linux was heavily influenced by Unix, an operating system created by Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie at AT&T Bell Labs in 1969¹.
3.**GNU Project**: In 1983, Richard Stallman started the GNU Project to create a free Unix-like operating system. Although the GNU kernel (Hurd) was incomplete, the project provided many essential tools for Linux¹.
4.**Release of Linux**: Linus Torvalds released the first version of the Linux kernel on September 17, 1991. It quickly gained popularity among developers and the open-source community¹.
5.**Growth and Development**: Over the years, Linux has grown significantly, with contributions from developers worldwide. It has become the foundation for many operating systems, including popular distributions like Ubuntu, Fedora, and Debian¹.