olin

olin
Sri Lankan mother kissing her child on the cheek
Pronunciation	/ˈo.lin/
Usage	2023: Core (100% ↗︎ )2022: Core (99%)
Book and era	nimi pu
Part of speech	Content word
Codepoint	󱥅 U+F1945

olin is a core content word relating to love and emotional bonds.

Etymology

The word olin is derived from Croatian volim, meaning "I love".

Semantic space

This section needs work:

Differences in semantic space between speakers, ideally origins of the popular constraints on semantic space

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The semantic space of olin includes strong emotional bonds and affection, such as many kinds of love, be it platonic, familial, or romantic. It may refer to the object of affection, as in a love interest.

mi olin e jan mi

mi olin e jan mi.

I love my partner.

olin mi li suwi

olin mi li suwi.

My partner is sweet.

The semantic space of olin does not map completely to the English concept of the words love and like. Notably, according to many speakers, olin does not include a inclination or preference towards something; this is expressed with a longer phrase, such as [ni] li pona tawa mi ("[this] is good towards me") or mi la [ni] li pona ("for me, [this] is good").

Others are less restrictive. In his thoughts on words tweets, jan Misali says to "go ahead and use olin for whatever type of love you want." Notably, in the book Toki Pona: The Language of Good, the word olin is used to mean being a fan:

kulupu lili li kama 　 ona li olin e toki-pona

kulupu lili li kama. ona li olin e toki pona.

A small community of Toki Pona fans emerged.

pu

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

VERB  to love, have compassion for, respect, show affection to

ku

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

loving⁵81–100% of respondents, love⁵81–100% of respondents, romance⁴61–80% of respondents, romantic³41–60% of respondents, compassion³41–60% of respondents, attraction²21–40% of respondents, intimate²21–40% of respondents, passion²21–40% of respondents, beloved²21–40% of respondents, loyalty²21–40% of respondents, loyal¹11–20% of respondents, faithful¹11–20% of respondents, dear¹11–20% of respondents, mercy¹11–20% of respondents, darling¹11–20% of respondents, passionate¹11–20% of respondents, care¹11–20% of respondents, appreciation¹11–20% of respondents, crush¹11–20% of respondents, respect¹11–20% of respondents

sitelen pona

The sitelen pona glyph for olin (󱥅) is derived from two heart radicals stacked on top of each other; these may be drawn either connected (olin1) or separated. Compare the glyph for pilin, which consists of a single heart. An alternative variant of olin (olin2) consists of a heart radical with emitters above.

sitelen sitelen

The sitelen sitelen word glyph for olin (olinolin) is composed of a heart shape with two circles inside. The circles may be simplified to dots when the glyph is written small. The exact influences for the design of this glyph are unknown.

Further reading

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