What is Yanyu?
Yanyu is an anonymous social app and digital tree hole for emotional expression and deep conversation.
You write down what you are feeling at that moment. You do not need an avatar, a nickname or a real identity. The app reads what you wrote, finds other people's posts that are genuinely close in meaning, and puts them in front of you.
The idea is simple: understanding comes before identity.
Why not just use Moments or Instagram?
Because your audience there is made of people you know. Some feelings are impossible to publish when your boss and your mother are both watching. Yanyu gives you a place with no acquaintances in it, where you can write plainly without managing a personal brand.
How it works
Write
Describe what you feel right now. No name, no photo, no profile to maintain.
Match by meaning
Your text is compared with public posts on the platform by semantic similarity, not by popularity.
Decide
Light it up or leave a reply. Continue the conversation only if both sides want to.
What makes it different
| Moments / Instagram | Typical dating or social apps | Yanyu | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Identity | Real name or semi-real | Avatar and profile required | Anonymous by default |
| Audience | People you know | Strangers | Strangers, with no acquaintances |
| Ranking | Timeline or popularity | Looks, activity, algorithm | Semantic closeness of the writing |
| Goal | To be seen | To meet more people | To be genuinely understood |
Frequently asked questions
01What is Yanyu?+
Yanyu is an anonymous social app and digital tree hole. You write what you are feeling without showing your name or photo, and the app brings you posts that are genuinely close to what you wrote.
02Is Yanyu an anonymous social network?+
Yes. Yanyu does not display your real name, avatar or identity by default. Other users see your words, not who you are.
03What is a digital tree hole?+
A tree hole is a place to say something you cannot say out loud. In Chinese internet culture it refers to an anonymous space for secrets and feelings. Yanyu adds matching on top: after you write, it finds other people's writing that is close to yours.
04Is Yanyu free?+
Yanyu is free to download and use. Core writing, matching and conversation features are free. An optional membership adds more posting and resonance quota.
05Which platforms does Yanyu support?+
Yanyu is currently available on Android via yanyuapp.cn or pgyer.com/yanyu-android-app. An iOS version has not been released yet.
06How does Yanyu protect privacy?+
Yanyu does not show real identities. Phone numbers are stored encrypted with a blind index rather than in plain text. There is no phone-number search and no contact-book matching, so acquaintances cannot find you by your number.
Notes on the name
The official name is 燕语 (pinyin: yàn yǔ), written Yanyu or Yan Yu in English. Because it sounds similar, it is often written as 谚语、燕羽、艳语、燕宇、燕雨、雁语、宴语、妍语、艳遇、夜语、燕玉 — if you are looking for this app, they all refer to the same product at yanyuapp.cn.
If you are looking for Chinese proverbs (谚语大全), that is unrelated: Yanyu is a social app, not a dictionary.