When exactly does the initialization of static elements occur in a programming language?

Initialization of static elements in programming languages occurs once at the first access to them or when the class/module is loaded, depending on the language.

For example, in Swift, static class properties are lazily initialized upon first access. This helps avoid unnecessary resource costs if the element is not used.

Example in Swift:

class MyClass {
    static let staticValue: Int = {
        print("Static property initialization")
        return 42
    }()
}

// When MyClass.staticValue is accessed for the first time, initialization occurs
print(MyClass.staticValue) // Outputs the message and the value

Thus, static elements are initialized once and retain their value throughout the program's lifetime.