I need your help.
For the past year, I’ve been working on a book about proverbs–you know, wise old sayings such as:
- Variety is the spice of life.
- Haste makes waste.
- A picture saves a thousand words.
- It is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.
- Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
I’ve studied over 600 English proverbs and want to see if my research applies to non-English proverbs. That’s where you come in. Do you speak another language? Would you be willing to share a proverb from that language? Here are a couple of examples of what I’m looking for:
Language: French
Proverb in French: “C’est La vie.”
Literal Translation to English: “It is the life.”
Equivalent Proverb in English: “That’s life.”
Language: Twi
Country of Origin: Ghana
Proverb in Twi: “Obi nhyira ne ho na ɔmmɔ ne yɔnko dua.”
Literal Translation to English: “Someone does not bless himself and curse his companion.”
Equivalent Proverb in English: The Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
I’ve created a Google Form to collect these proverbs. If you have a non-English proverb to share, just click on the “I’d like to share a non-English proverb” button below to be taken to a short form.
Thank you!
Photo Credit: Tanner, Benjamin, Engraver, and John James Barralet. America guided by wisdom An allegorical representation of the United States depicting their independence and prosperity / / Drawn by John J. Barralett ; engraved by B. Tanner. [United States: Publisher not identified, 1815] Image. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2010634241/