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What is Default Theme in WordPress?
Exploring the Evolution of WordPress’s Default Themes
Upon initiating your journey with WordPress by following the steps to set it up, you’re greeted by a pre-installed theme. This serves as the initial canvas for your website’s front-end. However, this is just a starting point, as users have the freedom to switch to an array of alternative WordPress themes.
Not merely a placeholder, the pre-installed WordPress theme is designed to demonstrate the platform’s capabilities. Rich in features, it’s versatile enough to construct a variety of basic sites. Moreover, it acts as a safety net; if your chosen theme is removed or malfunctions, WordPress reverts to this default theme to ensure your site remains operational.
Tracing back to 2003, the inception of WordPress, Matt Mullenweg crafted the very first theme. At that time, the concept of theme switching was non-existent for users. The evolution continued with the introduction of the WordPress Classic Theme alongside WordPress 1.2. The pivotal moment came with WordPress 1.5, which brought the Kubrick theme and the newfound flexibility for users to alternate between themes. Despite the influx of new themes, Kubrick held its position as the default choice until the arrival of TwentyTen with WordPress 3.0.
Since 2010, the WordPress team has maintained a tradition of releasing an annual default theme, each named to reflect the corresponding year. Among these, TwentyTen has distinguished itself, amassing a significant number of downloads and maintaining its popularity over time.