esun

esun
Pronunciation	/ˈe.sun/ (listen)
Usage	2023: Core (98% ↗ ) 2022: Core (96%)
Book and era	nimi pu
Part of speech	Content word
Codepoint	󱤋 U+F190B

esun is a core content word relating to trade and exchanging.

Etymology

The etymology of the word esun is uncertain. According to jan Sonja in 2020, "esun was told [to her] by a taxi driver who spoke a language from the Akan family in West Africa". However, it is unclear which language and which word it originated from. It might possibly be from Twi edwom, meaning "market (place)", as noted by ale sa in 2023.

Semantic space

The semantic space space of esun includes trading and exchanging. Exchanging is not limited to money; it can be anything either concrete (such as barter) or abstract (such as exchanging knowledge).

It includes the act or an instance of trading, something of or relating to trading, and a place of business. For the place, some examples include markets, shops, fairs, bazaars.

The phrase tenpo esun is a common way to say "week", which literally means "the time relating to business".

pu

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

NOUN  market, shop, fair, bazaar, business transaction

ku

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

trading⁵81–100% of respondents, trade⁵81–100% of respondents, shopping⁵81–100% of respondents, deal⁴61–80% of respondents, commerce⁴61–80% of respondents, purchase⁴61–80% of respondents, sales⁴61–80% of respondents, buy⁴61–80% of respondents, transaction⁴61–80% of respondents, market⁴61–80% of respondents, sale³41–60% of respondents, exchange³41–60% of respondents, sell³41–60% of respondents, retail³41–60% of respondents, business³41–60% of respondents, shop³41–60% of respondents, store²21–40% of respondents, commercial²21–40% of respondents, financial²21–40% of respondents, enterprise²21–40% of respondents, economy²21–40% of respondents, franchise²21–40% of respondents

sitelen pona

The sitelen pona glyph for esun is derived from the Mi'kmaq hieroglyphs, according to jan Sonja in a message from 2021. It is unknown, however, which hieroglyph it originated from.

See also

• mani

Further reading

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