Why is pair, make_pair, and rel_ops all in the same include file?

Question

I know the standard library has its warts (find me a language with a standard library that doesn't) but I've always wondered why they felt the need to stuff two seemingly unrelated pieces of code into an include named "utility." Was there once a reason for this? Did this library once contain more things that were deemed helpful or became so fleshed out to warrant their own header files?

Basically what I'm trying to get my head around is what do pair, make_pair, and rel_ops have in common?

Answer 1

Well, I think it's clear what pair and make_pair have in common.

rel_ops OTOH does seem to have no connection. But where should it go? All three are very basic utility features, usable in a wide variety of domains. The really only place for them is in a non-descript "utility" file. The real question is why there aren't more in there...