Proverbs

	*(An asterisk is marked beside ethnic groups, cultures, or regions as opposed to specific countries)*

Afghanistan	Gaelic *	Malaysia	Slovenia
African *	Georgia	Malta	Somalia
American Indian	Germany	Mexico	South Africa
Ancient	Ghana	Morocco	Spain
Arab *	Greece	Netherlands	Swahili *
Argentina	Guinea, Rep.of	Netherlands Antilles	Sweden
Armenia	Haiti	New Zealand	Switzerland
Austria	Hebrew *	Niger	Tamil *
Azerbaijan	Hindu *	Nigeria	Tanzania
Bantu *	Hungary	Norway	Thailand
Belgium	Iceland	Oriental *	Tibetan *
Benin	India	Palestinian *	Turkey
Bosnia & Herzegovina	Iran	Persian *	Uganda
Brazil	Ireland	Philippines	Ukraine
Bulgaria	Italy	Poland	United States
Burma	Jamaica	Portugal	Unknown
Cameroon	Japan	Romania	Vietnam
China	Jewish *	Russia	Wall Street *
Congo (Kinshasa)	Kasmiri *	Rwanda	Welsh *
Cuba	Kenya	Samoa	Yiddish *
Czech Republic	Korea, South	Saudi Arabia	Yugoslavia, Federal Rep. Of
Denmark	Kurdish *	Scandinavian *	Zen *
Egypt	Latin *	Scottish *	Zimbabwe
English *	Latvia	Senegal
Ethiopia	Lebanon	Sicilian *
France	Madagascar	Sierra Leone






	COPYRIGHT © 2002- ForeverTears. Unless otherwise noted. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED




	Afghanistan
	There are twenty-five uncaught sparrows for a penny. Don't show me the palm tree, show me the dates. Only stretch your foot to the length of your blanket. No one says his own buttermilk is sour.



	African *
	If you refuse to be made straight when you are green, you will not be made straight when you are dry. Do not look where you fell, but where you slipped. A wise man never knows all, only fools know everything. Indecision is like a stepchild: if he does not wash his hands, he is called dirty, if he does, he is wasting water. Only a fool tests the depth of the water with both feet.



	American Indian
	Never criticize a man until you've walked a mile in his moccasins.



	Ancient
	Good habits result from resisting temptation.



	Arab *
	Dwell not upon thy weariness, thy strength shall be according to the measure of thy desire. Examine what is said, not him who speaks. Make your bargain before beginning to plow.



	Argentina
	No woman can make a wise man out of a fool, but every woman can change a wise man into a fool. If you have a tail of straw, then keep away from the fire. A man who develops himself is born twice. A dog that barks all the time gets little attention.



	Armenia
	The world is a pot, man but a spoon in it. How can one start a fast with baklava in one's hand. The eagle was killed by an arrow made from its own feathers. Clouds that thunder do not always rain.



	Austria
	The hunt is like a dance for men, for women the dance is the hunt. A light is still a light - even though the blind man cannot see it. If you shoot your arrows at stones, you will damage them. The earth does not shake when the flea coughs.



	Azerbaijan
	One's own simple bread is much better than someone else's pilaf. It's not shameful not to know, but it's shameful not to ask. Beauty is ten, nine of which is dressing.



	Bantu *
	The earth is a beehive; we all enter by the same door but live in different cells. The eye never forgets what the heart has seen. A good deed will make a good neighbor. No man can paddle two canoes at the same time.



	Belgium
	Don't make use of another's mouth unless it has been lent to you. The horse must graze where it is tethered. Weeds never perish.



	Benin
	Anyone who sees beauty and does not look at it will soon be poor. Before you ask a man for clothes, look at the clothes he is wearing. Words are like spears: Once they leave your lips they can never come back.



	Bosnia & Herzegovina
	A brave man seldom is hurt in the back. When an ant gets wings, it loses its head. Two things rule the world - reward and punishment. Why would you use poison if you can kill with honey.



	Brazil
	The trees with most leaves will not necessarily produce juicy fruit. A wise man learns at the fool's expense. He who knows nothing, doubts nothing. You can only take out of a bag what was already in it.



	Bulgaria
	Seize opportunity by the beard, for it is bald behind. If you let everyone walk over you, you become a carpet. God promises a safe landing but not a calm passage. Nature, time, and patience are the three great physicians.



	Burma
	A hero only appears once the tiger is dead. One sesame seed won't make oil. The blind person never fears ghosts.



	Cameroon
	He who asks questions cannot avoid the answers. A chattering bird builds no nest. By trying often, the monkey learns to jump from the tree. Rain does not fall on one roof alone.



	China
	Be not afraid of growing slowly. Be afraid only of standing still. Do not employ handsome servants. Do not remove a fly from your friend's forehead with a hatchet. Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask remains a fool forever. If you bow at all, bow low. Keep your broken arm inside your sleeve. Raise your sail one foot and you get ten feet of wind. The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials. The palest ink is better than the best memory. To know the road ahead, ask those coming back. When you drink the water, remember the spring. When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one and a lily with the other. A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song. A thorn defends the rose, harming only those who would steal the blossom.



	Congo (Kinshasa)
	When the bee comes to your house, let her have beer; you may want to visit the bee's house some day. A pretty basket does not prevent worries. A cat goes to a monastery, but she still remains a cat.



	Cuba
	Listen to what they say of the others and you will know what they say about you. Believe only half of what you see and nothing of what you hear. What is new is pleasing and what is old is satisfying. Life is short but a smile takes barely a second. When the sun rises, it rises for everyone.



	Czech Republic
	Do not protect yourself by a fence, but rather by your friends. The big thieves hang the little ones. When you go to buy, use your eyes, not your ears. Do not choose your wife at a dance, but in the field among the harvesters. Wisdom is easy to carry but difficult to gather. Better a lie which heals than a truth which wounds. Nothing seems expensive on credit.



	Denmark
	Ask advise only of your equals. He who would leap high must take a long run. Better to ask twice than to lose your way once. He who builds according to every man's advice will have a crooked house.



	Egypt
	Learn politeness from the impolite. A beautiful thing is never perfect. The barking of a dog does not disturb the man on a camel.



	English
	A full cup must be carried steadily. Don't fall before you're pushed. Use soft words and hard arguments. Write down the advice of him who loves you, though you like it not at present. Some men go through a forest and see no firewood. It is better to begin in the evening than not at all.



	Ethiopia
	Advise and counsel him; if he does not listen, let adversity teach him. What one hopes for is always better than what one has. The frog wanted to be as big as the elephant, and burst. The witness of a rat is another rat.



	France
	Wait until it is night before saying that it has been a fine day. There is no pillow so soft as a clear conscience. With enough "ifs" we could put Paris into a bottle. Write injuries in sand, kindness in marble.



	Gaelic *
	He that will not look forward must look behind. He who would enjoy the fruit must not spoil the blossoms Even God cannot make two mountains without a valley in between. Assurance is two-thirds of success.



	Georgia
	The rooster said, "I shall cry but whether the sun rises God knows." God laughs at man's proposal. The cat which did not reach the sausage said" Anyhow it is Friday.



	Germany
	No answer is also an answer. A country can be judged by the quality of it's proverbs. Charity, see the need not the cause. Never give advise unless asked. Who begins too much accomplishes little. Too clever is stupid. God gives the nuts, but he does not crack them. Flatterers, like cats, lick and then scratch.



	Ghana
	No one tests the depth of the river with both feet. Hunger is felt by a slave and hunger is felt by a king. If there were no elephant in the jungle, the buffalo would be a great animal. Only when you have crossed the river can you say the crocodile has a lump on his snout.



	Greece
	First secure an independent income, then practice virtue. Milk the cow, but do not pull off the udder. Great abilities produce great vices as well as great virtues. Men who have lost heart never yet won a trophy.



	Guinea, Rep. of
	Save your fowl before it stops flapping. When you wait for tomorrow it never comes. When you don't wait for it tomorrow still comes. The man on his feet carries off the share of the man sitting down.



	Haiti
	Beyond the mountain is another mountain. Ignorance doesn't kill you, but it does make you sweat a lot. The pencil of God has no eraser. If someone sweats for you, you change his shirt. Don't insult the alligator until you've crossed the river.



	Hebrew *
	Teach thy tongue to say, "I do not know." If a word be worth one shekel, silence is worth two. Poverty is a wonderful thing. It sticks to a man after all his friends have forsaken him.



	Hindu *
	A man in this world without learning is as a beast of the field. Among the blind, the squint rules. When an elephant is in trouble even a frog will kick him. Never strike your wife, even with a flower.