View source for Practicality

{{Essay}}
{{Needs work|Vetting, more perspectives and rebuttals}}
[[File:RobWords Toki Pona video comments.png|250px|thumb|Analysis of first 1000 top-level comments on the video about Toki Pona by YouTuber Rob Watts (RobWords), demonstrating non-speakers' views of the practicality of the language]]

The '''practicality''' of [[Toki Pona]] for real-world use is debated, as it is primarily a {{w|Philosophical language|philosophical}} {{w|artistic language}}. This extends to whether lack of fitness for various use cases would be a shortcoming of Toki Pona, thus devaluing it, or simply outside of its design goals.

Often, when people are introduced to the language, they voice concerns about Toki Pona being used in {{w|emergencies}}, or otherwise precise, risky, or jargon-heavy situations such as {{w|medical examination}}s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202121235/https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/301380012156911616/1202926900633407529/robwordscomments.png|title=Stats from the 1000 first top-level comments on Robwords' video on Toki Pona|author={{tok|jan Sepulon}}|username=|date=2024-02-02|website=Discord|access-date=2024-02-02}}</ref> Suffice it to say that a niche hobby {{w|constructed language}} is not being used in such applications, and most [[Tokiponist]]s are not promoting it for such usage.

These concerns may stem from the assumption that Toki Pona has the same {{w|Finvenkism|goals of global adoption}} as the {{w|Esperanto movement}}; in reality, Toki Pona is not an [[international auxiliary language]], and many Tokiponists are against treating it as such.

=={{tp|pu}}==
The book {{lipu pu|en}}, in the chapter "Limitations", claims the following:<ref>{{cite pu|11}}</ref>

<blockquote>
Such texts [as chemical textbooks and legal documents] are products of the complex, modern civilization we live in and are not suited for a cute, little language like Toki Pona.
</blockquote>

Tokiponists have contested this<ref>{{cite web|url=//joelthomastr.github.io/tokipona/pana-sona-ale_si|title=jan li ken pana e sona ale kepeken toki pona|trans-title=A person can give all knowledge with Toki Pona|language=tok|author={{tok|jan Telakoman}}, Gabriel Mizrahi ({{tok|jan Kapu}})|username=joelthomastr|date=2020-11-30|website=lipu pi jan Telakoman|publisher=GitHub Pages|access-date=2024-02-01}}</ref> and created resources in Toki Pona for learning [[Complexity|technical subjects]], such as {{w|non-Euclidean geometry}}.<ref>{{cite YouTube|id=tL1WBUOqE48|title=nasin pi sitelen ma pi jan Ekite ala|trans-title=Non-Euclidean geometry|language=tok|author={{tok|jan Telakoman}}|channel={{tok|jan Telakoman}}|handle={{tok|jantelakoman}}|date=Apr 14, 2021|access-date=2024-02-01|quote=}}</ref> As a result, {{tok|[[jan Sonja]]}} has retracted this statement.<ref>{{cite Discord|url=//discord.com/channels/301377942062366741/1078420779231875203/1201012875616063589|thread={{tok|sona.pona.la}}|channel={{tok|toki-suli}}|server={{tp|ma pona pi toki pona}}|author={{tok|[[jan Sonja]]}}|username=sonjalang|access-date=2024-02-01|quote=i may have been wrong because plenty of people have proven me wrong. you can do non euclidian geometry and other topics}}</ref> Still, many Tokiponists have seen fit to keep using elements of Toki Pona that arguably limit its potential practicality, such as the limited [[number system]]s described in {{tp|pu}}.

==Emergencies==
{{Needs media|[https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1916659-science-diagrams-that-look-like-shitposts the "{{tp|a}}" shark meme]}}
As of 2024, Toki Pona is probably unsuitable for emergency situations due to the low number of speakers. Navigating emergencies in the language would be most likely to come up at a Toki Pona [[gathering]]. Instructions would ideally still be given multilingually, as often already occurs with natural languages. It remains to be seen whether Toki Pona will grow enough to become relevant in emergencies.

Some potential translations of "help" as a cry of distress include:

{{Example
|o awen e mi!
|Protect me!
|o awen e mi
}}

{{Example
|o pana e pona!<ref>{{cite ku|99}}</ref>
|Provide goodness! / health!
|o pana e pona
}}

{{Example
|mi moli!
|I'm dying!
|mi moli
}}

[[File:Lipu tenpo nanpa suno - lipu awen.png|250px|thumb|Earthquake preparedness poster in Toki Pona,<ref>{{tok|kili Melon}} (2 July 2021). "{{tok|ma li tawa la jan o seme}}". In [https://liputenpo.org/lipu-tenpo-nanpa-suno/ {{tp|lipu tenpo nanpa suno}}] (in Toki Pona). {{tp|lipu tenpo}}.</ref> meaning "Drop! Cover! Stay!"]]

While not standardized, emergency protocols could be given in Toki Pona. For demonstration, a reasonably detailed safety protocol during an {{w|earthquake}} might be:

{{Example
|o tawa anpa supa. o len o awen e lawa sina. o jo e noka supa.
|Go below furniture. Cover and protect your head. Hold the furniture's leg.
|o tawa anpa supa{{idsp}}o len o awen e lawa sina{{idsp}}o jo e noka supa
}}

==Jargon==
Toki Pona can express concepts that are given {{w|jargon}} in English and other natural languages, although generally not as efficiently. It may demand [[mi ken ala toki pona e ijo la mi sona ala e ijo|deeper understanding]] of the concepts involved, but among professionals in a technical field, this would presumably be the case. Thus, issues with translating jargon would come down to lack of technical understanding or Toki Pona skill, rather than a shortcoming of the language inherently.

For jargon that is relatively international, while Toki Pona's [[philosophy]] <em>prefers</em> that concepts are explained in simple language, one could [[Toki Pona is not exceptional|do as natural languages have]] and translate terms such as "{{w|HDMI cable}}" as {{tp|[[linja]] HDMI}}, for example. (See also {{sect|Names#Against names}}.) If this does not work, one would have to describe the subject or explain what it does in better detail, but this is still equally true of other languages.

Notably, very many such technical terms were not present in <em>any</em> languages until recently, so this seems like a flawed metric to measure a language's practicality, much less how worthwhile its existence and usage is. (For example, what is the term for "HDMI cable" in {{w|Latin}}?)

There is also an argument that the lack of jargon can be <em>more</em> practical. While jargon provides better {{w|information density}}, it risks not properly or fully conveying the information in the first place, limiting its practicality. The plain, transparent approach encourages sharing and building proper understanding, and discourages obfuscation tactics such as "{{w|bullshitting}}". As put by {{tok|jan Lakuse}}:<ref>{{cite roundtable|page=7}}</ref>
<blockquote>
A person can't throw a million-dollar {{w|buzzword}} at you like {{wikt|antidisestablishmentarianism}} and expect you to know what they're talking about. They have to be curious about where you are and meet you where you're at. Instead of conversation starting with a buzzword, 'antidisestablishmentarianism,' it might start instead with, 'so how familiar are you with the Church of England?'
</blockquote>

==See also==
*[[Complexity]]
*[[Frequently asked questions]]

==References==
<references />