July 19, 2002. Q: Why doesn’t the Java language support multiple inheritance? A: Whenever you find yourself asking why Java has or does not have some feature, consider the design goals behind ...

Java’s single inheritance limitation is usually not a problem in the normal course of development. In fact, the need to use multiple inheritance could be a sign of a bad design.

With multiple inheritance you might be tempted to say the Pegasus extends Horse and Bird because you've classified the Bird as an animal with wings. However, Birds have other traits that Pegasi don't.