What does AJAX stand for?

AJAX stands for Asynchronous JavaScript And XML. This term reflects the key technologies involved in AJAX: JavaScript, which is used to handle the asynchronous communication with the server, and XML, which was traditionally used to format the data sent back and forth. The term "asynchronous" highlights that AJAX allows web pages to update asynchronously by exchanging small amounts of data with the server behind the scenes, leading to a more dynamic and responsive user experience without requiring a full page reload.

The other options either incorrectly name the technologies or misrepresent their roles. For instance, referring to XHTML or Java in the context of AJAX is not accurate since the primary focus is on JavaScript and its ability to manage asynchronous communication. This incorrect naming detracts from the core functionality and purpose of AJAX, which fundamentally relies on JavaScript processing the data returned, often formatted as XML or JSON.