Appendix:Toki Pona/jan

Toki Pona

jan in sitelen pona

Glyph origin

Possibly a default profile picture on most websites.

Etymology

From Cantonese 人 (jan⁴, “person”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jan/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -an

Noun

jan

1. person
   1. human (Homo sapiens)
   2. a being with equivalent sentience to a human, such as an alien, or that was or sometimes is a human, such as a werewolf.
2. somebody, anybody

Derived terms

• jan pona
• jan pali

Usage notes

While jan is the typical head noun for names of people, some speakers prefer to name themselves with other head nouns. A philosophy called "jan't" avoids using jan for anyone who does not explicitly want it. These speakers may reduce phrases like jan mute to mute, or replace jan alone with ijo or soweli.

Adjective

jan

1. of or relating to humans
2. personal

Verb

jan

1. (transitive) to turn into a person or human form; to personify, to anthropomorphize
2. (transitive) to personalize