Article about game entities composed by components: http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/MeganFox/20101208/6590/Game_Engines_101_The_EntityComponent_Model.php

There is nothing special to components in game development, it's just a software design pattern where the goal is to simplify certain tasks just like all other software designs patterns out there.

Components allow your entities to be composed of several parts, where each of them get updated independently, probably by a manager. The goal is to get more modular code where you can plug in and out different sort of functionality and behaviour for your entities.

Could be a HealthComponent, adds health functionality to an object so it can get damaged. Now anything that shoots at that entity will damage it. Could be JumpComponent, any entity who has this component can jump now.

Think of it as an extension.

Just some examples

Yes Jibb this has nothing to do with languages at all, it's just a software design pattern.