Why are many languages case sensitive?

Question

Why are many languages case sensitive?

Is it simply a matter of inheritance? C++ is case-sensitive because C is, Java is case-sensitive because C++ is, etc.? Or is t

Answer 1

Case sensitivity adds to language readability by the use of naming conventions. You can't write

Person person = new Person("Bill");

if your language is case insensitive, because the compiler wouldn't be able to distinguish between the Class name and the variable name.

Also, having Person, person, PersoN, PeRsOn, and PERSON, all be equivalent tokens would give me a headache. :)