Final answer:
Whether function prototypes are required depends on the programming language; they are essential in languages like C but not required in dynamically typed languages like Python.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that function prototypes are required in a programming language can be both true and false depending on the context and the programming language in question. For some languages, such as C, it is true that a function prototype, which is a declaration of a function that specifies the function's name, return type, and parameters, is needed before the function can be called. This allows the compiler to correctly parse and handle the function calls and properly link the function definitions. However, in other programming languages, like Python, function prototypes are not required since the language uses dynamic typing and the functions do not need to be declared before they are used.