Aminat508:
Midolian u did not mention me ni? I miss the FTC

midolian:
Yes!

Few days ago, I promised to come up with some "super-lovely" yoruba proverbs and here I am with them.

Proverbs no doubt are a part of what makes the Yoruba language very rich. They are a quick, deep and effective way of passing messages in such a way that joining a thousand sentences together sometimes cant.


For your reading pleasure!

1.) A fi o joba o nsawure o fe je Olorun ni?

Meaning: You have been crowned a king, and yet you make good-luck charms; would you be crowned God?

Being crowned a king is about the best fortune a mortal could hope for.

2.) A ki binu ori ka fi fila de ibadi.

One does not get angry with one's head and therefore use one's cap to cover one's buttocks.

Do not cut your nose to spite your face.

3.) A ki binu ori ka fi fila de ibadi.

One does not get angry with one's head and therefore use one's cap to cover one's buttocks.

Do not cut your nose to spite your face.

4.) A ki i bo orisa loju ofon-on; bo ba dale a maa tu pepe.

One does not sacrifice to a god in the presence of a house rat; otherwise, when night falls it invades the rafter shelves.

Do not do things that might constitute temptation to others.

5.) A nsoro ole, aboyun ndahun; odiidi eyan lo gbe pamo.

We speak of stealing and a pregnant woman intervenes; she herself is concealing a whole person.

Her condition makes her guilty of concealment.

6.) A pe e lomo erin-magbon o nyo; iwo paapa lo mi i?

You are described as the child of the elephant that swallows coconuts, and you rejoice; are you the one who swallows coconuts?

The description honors the father, not the person being addressed.

7.) A-bi-i-ko; a-ko-i-gba; ode lo ti nkogbon wale.

A-child-that-was-never-taught-how-to-behave; a-child-that-was-taught-but-that-refused-to-heed-instruction; it is from outside the home that he will learn wisdom.

Look well to your child's upbringing.

8.) Abulera ofon-on; o ni ojo ti ologbo-o ti bi oun o iti-i da a ni barika.

Mouse-that-does-not-know-its-place; it says that since the day the cat delivered (a baby) it has not gone to offer congratulations.

Never forget your vulnerabilities and limitations.

9.) Adigbonrankun nfiku sere.

Death-feigning-beetle flirts with death.

If one persists in flirting with disaster, disaster is liable to befall one.

10.) Afopina to fe pan-a suya: eran po si i.

The moth (that) tries to put out the barbecue fire: the meat becomes more plentiful.

A person who foolishly attempts dangerous tasks courts destruction.

11.) A bimo ko gbon, a ni ko ma saa ku; ki ni npa omo bi aigbon?

A child lacks wisdom, and some say that what is important is that the child does not die; what kills more surely than lack of wisdom?

A foolish child is not much better than a dead child.

12.) A ki i fi ona ikun han ifun.

One does not show the throat the way to the stomach.

Do not presume to know better than the expert.


13.) A ki le lku meji ka ma pofo.

One does not chase two rats and avoid coming up with nothing.

Never try to go in two directions at once.

14.) A nfotun teni, a nfosi tu sokoto, obinrin ni a ko ba oun gbo t-omo.

One spreads a mat with the right hand while removing one's pants with the left hand; yet the woman complains that one is not helping her quest for a child.

Some people are incapable of recognizing and acknowledging favors.

15.) Ahun nre ajo, o gbe ile-e re dani.

Tortoise embarks on a journey and takes his house with it.

One's dearest possessions deserve one's closest attention.

16.) Aja la ba ki; ese o peran funni je.

One should rather commend the dog; the cat does not kill meat for one to eat.

Assign commensurate values to your assets.

17.) Adie njeka, o mmumi,o ngbe okuta pe-pe-pe mi, o ni oun o lehin; ideregbe to lehin ngbe irin mi bi?

The chicken eats corn, drinks water, even swallows small pebbles, and yet complains that it lacks teeth; does the goat that has teeth swallow steel?

One should be content with one's lot.

18.) Bi a ba fi odun meta pilese-e were, ojo wo la o bunije?

If one takes three years to prepare for one's madness, when will one start biting people?

Preparations for an action should not be endless.

19.) Bi ajanaku o ba gbekele furo, ki i mi odu agbon

If an elephant is not sure of its anus, it does not swallow whole coconuts.

Unless one can cope with the consequences, one does not engage in an action.

20.) Bi ina ba joni, to jo omo eni, tara eni la nko gbon.

If one is on fire and one's child is on fire, one douses one's fire first.

Without first attending to one's needs, one cannot attend to others'.

21.) Obinrin beere osi beere.

Innumerable wives, innumerable problems.

Whoever adds wives to wives adds problems to problems.

22.) Obo-o ni itiju lo mu oun sapamo sabe inu, sugbon bi oko ba de, oun a sina fun un.

The vagina says its is coyness that caused it to hide below the belly, but if a penis shows up, it will open the way for it.

Modesty does not indicate a lack of ability or willingness to act decisively.

23.) Ogun agbotele ki I pa aro.

A long foreseen war does not kill a cripple.

One must take advantage of foreknowledge to protect oneself.

24.) Ohun ti aja ri to fi ngbo o to eyi ti aguntan-an fi nseran wo.

That which a dog sees and barks at is nothing compared to what the sheep contemplates in silence.

Some people make mountains out of other people's mole-hills.

25.) Oko abinuju ki i peye.

A stone thrown in anger does not kill a bird.

Whatever one does in anger is liable to go awry.

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