anu

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anu is a particle used to indicate alternatives, corresponding with the English conjunctions or (exclusive disjunction) and and/or (inclusive disjunction).

anu
Pronunciation	/ˈa.nu/
Usage	2023: Core (99% ↗︎ )2022: Core (98%)
Book and era	nimi pu
Part of speech	Particle
Codepoint	󱤇 U+F1907

Function

Tag questions

Main article: Questions

anu is most commonly used in the phrase anu seme to form tag questions. This literally means "or what?" and it is one of two ways to form yes-or-no questions in Toki Pona.

ona li jan-pona anu seme

ona li jan pona anu seme?

They are a good person, aren't they?
Are they a good person?

Disjunction

The usage of the word anu is rather underspecified in Toki Pona: The Language of Good. Nevertheless, it is used there for disjunction, to indicate an alternative among multiple things. The community at large is hesitant to use it this way, but there are examples of it in practice.

ona li kama e pilin-ike anu pilin-pona la ni li suli ala

ona li kama e pilin ike anu pilin pona la ni li suli ala.

Whether it brings pain or pleasure, this is unimportant.
It doesn't matter whether it brings pain or pleasure.

Sometimes anu seme is added on to the end of a series of alternatives to leave the question open:

ona li ilo anu moku anu seme?

ona li ilo anu moku anu seme?

Is it a tool or food or what?

Alternatives can also be embedded within a larger admission of ignorance.

mi sona ala e ni: tenpo li suno anu pimeja　

mi sona ala e ni: tenpo li suno anu pimeja.

I don't know this: the time is bright or dark.
I don't know whether it's day time or night time.

Definitions

pu

In the "Official Toki Pona Dictionary" section, the book Toki Pona: The Language of Good defines awen as:

PARTICLE  or

ku

For Toki Pona Dictionary, respondents in ma pona pi toki pona translated these English words as awen:

or⁵81–100% of respondents, whether³41–60% of respondents, choice³41–60% of respondents, selection²21–40% of respondents, decide²21–40% of respondents, either²21–40% of respondents, select²21–40% of respondents

History

The subject of this article is historical information that is presented for completeness, and might not reflect current usage.

Pre-pu usage

The usage of anu to form questions without seme was widespread before the publication of pu.

The course o kama sona e toki pona! by jan Pije, the most influential resource for learning Toki Pona in the pre-pu era, taught anu explicitly and exclusively as a word for marking questions. This included questions without seme, as well as tag questions ending in anu seme.

This word can be used to make questions when there's a choice between two different options. For example, if you came home to find that someone had eaten all of the cookies, and you know that the person who ate them has to be either Susan or Lisa, you might ask:

jan Susan anu jan Lisa li moku e suwi?

Semi-literally, this sentence reads, Susan or Lisa ate the cookies? In colloquial English, it reads, "Did Susan eat the cookies, or was it Lisa?" As you see, you can't necessarily translate directly from English, especially with anu. […]

anu was also used to make statements. In the learning course Toki Pona in 76 illustrated lessons, the usage of anu was taught in statements and questions side by side, distinguished only by the presence of a question mark or a period.

anu means "or"

mi wile jo e mani anu moku. — I want to have money or food.

sina ken moku e kili anu suwi. taso wan taso. — you can eat a trout or a cookie, but only one.

sina olin e mi anu ona? — do you love me or him?

sina toki tawa mi anu tawa ona? — do you speak to me or to him?

ni li waso anu tomo tawa kon? ala. ni li jan Superman! — Is that a bird or an airplane? No. This is Superman.

pu usage

In the book Toki Pona: The Language of Good, the word anu is defined, but not explained outside of its role in anu seme tag questions. The book only provides two sentences containing anu without using anu seme.

mi kute e mije anu meli　

mi kute e mije anu meli.

I hear a man or a woman. (answer to Lesson 7)

wile sona nanpa wan li ni : ale li pona anu ike

wile sona nanpa wan li ni: ale li pona anu ike?

The most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile. (Quote misattributed to Albert Einstein)

Possible analyses:

• In the first sentence, anu is presented as a statement. It might still act as a kind of chioce and could in some way work as a question.
• While in the second sentence, anu is presented as a question. It is not clear whether anu is responsible for forming this question, or if the phrase wile sona is. That sentence is also not question in the English translation. Although this arises out of the reformulation of format. A literal translation may include a question: "the foremost question is this: is the universe good or bad?"

Experimental usages

The subject of this article is an experimental or hypothetical style that is not understood by most speakers, or is used only in specific small communities. Learners should avoid using it.

Content word

The word anu is sometimes used as a content word meaning "to choose, to decide". This meaning is controversial due to the lack of content word meanings given to other particles in the language.

anu suli pi(ma [taso ona sona ijo])

anu suli pi ma Tosi

German national election (literally, "Germany's big choice")

Semiparticle

The word anu may behave similarly to a semiparticle and thus be able to be part of a la phrase, as a whole meaning "otherwise".

mi monsuta e sina la o weka 　 anu la ni li tenpo alasa

mi monsuta e sina la o weka. anu la ni li tenpo alasa.

If I scared you, then run away. Otherwise it's hunting time.

In smaller communities,^{[citation needed…]}This claim needs references to reliable sources:
who?
an experimental usage of anu was proposed as a semiparticle, similar to taso and kin, as modifiers of a phrase. This usage notably reduces the level of ambiguity created by anu in situations where it would otherwise be unclear to replace particles or prepositions.

sina ken tawa tomo sitelen tawa tomo moku anu

sina ken tawa tomo sitelen tawa tomo moku anu.

You can go to the art gallery or to the restaurant.

Further reading

Resources

• Toki Pona: The Language of Good: Lesson 7
• jan Lentan: Lesson 7
• soweli Tesa: Lesson 12
• nasin toki pona the particle anu

Resources for historical usage

• jan Pije: Lesson 12 (maintained from 2003 to mid 2010s)
• 76 Illustrated Lessons: Lesson 63 (original published in 2004, English translation in 2009)

Dictionaries

• "anu" on lipu Linku
• "anu" on lipu Wikipesija
• "anu" on English Wiktionary