Akhue oyi khian owe re iren mue uhunmwun gbe emwin.E re nu uhunmwun e ra gualo-when in pursuit of a thief,the thief does not stop and say that he just hit his head against something because it is the head you want.

Okhuo mien oya vbe oghe ne ta se owa-women do get shame and suffering from prostitution that they do not tell at home.

Ofo  fo okhokho sokpan igan ma gia beghe re-the chicken sweats but feathers prevent  it from being seen(rich also cry).

Agha we agha wu,ai wa ke owie ya lovbie ye idin-that death is certain does not make one sleep in the grave.

Ason gha rhe irumwun khien omwan-when night falls grass turns to humans(anything can happen).

Urhu okpa te rhierhien sokpan eke no vbie isisan-The rooster has a rich voice but the place it sleeps is full if poo.

Ere iko ne ahua ye okhokho na mu unu-The chicken has no say in a gathering of hawks.

Ekhue mue omwenmwen vbe no mue etionren-the relatives of the mad has more shame than the mad person.

Emwingharhe,oye vbe ne ghi fo-a fad(trend,fashion),when it comes,does not look like it will end.

E re ahianmwen no fua hia o re oghohon-not all white looking birds are eagles.

Agha ye omo ku aghi mu gie nibie ore-after playing with a child you give the child back to the parents.

Ama rhie abe vba agbon,ai rhie abe vbe erimwin-If you are not guilty in this world you will not be guilty in heaven.

Ai fie obo ye eko tolo-you cannot scratch your inside.

Omwan ne evbienren wiri to gha wewe-the person who lost something will broadcast it.

Ai bie okun la-you cannot part the ocean(Atlantic) to pass through.

Favorite quotes on this thread.

you cannot spread a woman's private with one finger

he who shakes the iroko tree shakes himself

there is no witness to a dream

No matter how hairy the head becomes, the forehead remains distinct

In a funeral each mourner mourns the fate that befalls him, not the deceased’s

Food that is too close to the mouth is difficult to eat.

You don’t argue about a dream with its dreamer

The chicken has no say in a gathering of hawks

when in pursuit of a thief,the thief does not stop and say that he just hit his head against something

An interesting and unusual proverb that I came across:


"A gha sẹ Ẹdo, Ẹdo rree” - When One Arrives in Benin, Benin is Distant


I found the quote and its explanation here:

http://greatbenin..com/2011/04/agha-se-edo-edo-rree-when-one-arrives.html

@PhysicsMHD,I have been engaged in other time consuming activities that had kept me away from Nairaland(still am,though). I must commend you for your vigorous and detailed defense of the Binis in the face of unwarranted effort by some people hell-bent on bringing us to opprobrium. Osa`Nobua Noghodua gha deba rue khian rinrinrinrin.Ise.

There is a Bini proverb that also says `Agbon dinmwin-the world is deep.I do not think that the literal meaning has to do with the distance to the core of the earth.There is so much knowledge of the world,physical and spiritual among the Binis that it is almost,if not,impossible for one person to claim to know of it all even as a Bini. So,`agha se Edo,Edo rree`.

Ehe no ma gia guan yi,ere emwanta ye-where one could not say anything,there is the truth.

Na momo re ukpon oghe omwan ekun ekun-the one you borrowed clothes from keep looking at your waist.

Arhia na, arhia vbe he, te uki ye ba-this generation, next generation, the moon will still shine.

Ta te uze amaya-you take an opportunity( when it comes).

Evbako e ra rhie ehe re-you reap what you sow.

Thanks bokohalal. I've been a bit busy recently, but I'll be responding to any other statements about Binis as time permits. I also have to commend you for these proverbs. Keep up the good work.

----

i dont know how to write this in bini. but there is this bini proverb that says:

"the p.enis that is not erect is not a fool, he is only contemplating how many kids he is going to have"

and there is another one that says: "you don't pound a woman's v.agina with your fist"

ahhh… i wish i could write Bini.
so @bokohalal, please help me translate those when you are free.

i must say this forum has made me to start taking my written bini seriously, lol.

so i think i can now attempt to translate this proverb:

you don't pound a woman's v.agina with your fist -- aiyé ékpa gbé uhe

exotik:

i must say this forum has made me to start taking my written bini seriously, lol.

so i think i can now attempt to translate this proverb:

you don't pound a woman's v.agina with your fist -- aiyé ékpa gbé uhe

@exotik,I think the full saying goes `ekia ma don,ai ye ekpa gbe uhe`-if the pe-nis does not get e.rect you do not pound a woman`s private with your fist.
Meaning;some things are just meant for others.No substitution.

bokohalal, oh cool. thanx. i was almost going to say my proverbs are open for modifications and corrections

and there is this old bini music by fabomo called "itendo", it has a lot of edo proverbs. i think i will search for it to buy to update my edo knowledge coz i remember it was a big hit in those days.

found the song i was talking about on youtube

[flash=425,344]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAvF-8M0biE[/flash]

Unu e ro ka mien emwen-It is the mouth that first finds trouble.

Isan sua isan vbe onisan-It is poo that pushes poo from the anus.

Eko rienrhien ikpia gbe iran ya mue ikia ma egbe-It is out of a joyful heart that men show their privates to one another.

Erhan noma gie owe gbe e ro tie `gha rhe vba`-The tree the farmer could not fell he calls `let it be`.

Ai non ovbokhan we re vbo khian khian vbe agbon-You do not ask a child what he/she is going to become in life.

Emwen gha le egbo oghi go-when an issue passes through the forest it gets bent.

Eghe na ya hiorhe or e owie-the time you wake up is (your)morning.

Ezegbe omwan amen e ra ye won-the sea kills but we still drink water.

Ai ye vbe ne egbe ya tolo omwan ya tolo e-you do not scratch your body the way it itches.

Ikhuo eso ye vbe erhu.Iran lele okpia le eti-some women are like hats .They do not go through a thicket with a man.

i love this... Egbe wa ya domo o, ogha ma nu wa ya!

I know this post is an old one, but I would just like to thank you for putting it here. It has helped me learn a little more about the language, since I am a non-native speaker (European). If there are any more proverbs, keep them coming! I really like to learn more

Thanks again!

ọtse ọ ka kpe abọ a, ọ rwe o mhu ekẹ - when the crab washes its hands, it still grabs the ground with it.
(meaning- used to describe a futile action)

alamigo l'ọọ khi: a ka de inami o fi eva- The hare says: when one falls, one doubles the (speed of) running
(used to encourage a person that has failed not to give up)

ekpami e wa j'oshimi e waa gia- If the cheeks do not move back, they cannot laugh
(used to encourage a person who has experienced a setback in life)

amẹ o waa de ekẹ o wa swọ - It does not rain without the ground knowing

ọbo n'afẹ ọ waa mhwelwe- The doctor at home has no regard

Ọgb'ẹkpẹ l'ọ gie egbe ọli usomi ẹdo- it is the killer of a leopard that has sent himself on a journey to Edo(Benin)

A kaa chi mama okẹ, okẹ aa fọ- Thé closer one gets to the river, the cooler it gets

A kaa l'ugua, ugua o a wọgọ- The more you chew a bone, the softer it gets.

Abama l'ọọ khi: abi o li to, iyọ o li a lọkhọ- Abama said: the hotter it gets, the cooler it will become
(used to say the suffering one faces at present will determine his level of enjoyment when he finally achieved success)

a waa w'amẹ neni a rami okẹ- one does not fetch water before he gets to the river
(usually used to warn young people to wait until marriage before they start having sex)

ọgbọọgbọ l'ọ yẹsẹ ikpẹsẹ ọli w'auchi- Everyone knows his bed in Auchi
(use to say life is everyone for himself)

Please can anyone help me interpret FABOMO ITENDO song pls

bokohalal:
Agha mie na mase,uwu ghi gia wu-when you see the one you better than,you do not think of dying.

Asua gha sua omwan rrie okhuo,asua ghi sua omwan be owa-misfortune can follow one due to marriage but no mis fortune due to building a house.

A mie no ho na vbare-we all want to be the best.

Erokhi ma mien ebe,ele-if the chameleon does not see danger,it does not run.

Egbe na tete ogha khie eken-the body we so care for will eventually turn to earth.

Nice one.

exotik:
found the song i was talking about on youtube

[flash=425,344]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAvF-8M0biE[/flash]

Can u translate this song?

Words of wisdom.

bokohalal:

The highly centralized nature of the Benin monarchy has ensured little or no difference in the Edo language by its speakers. Everyone that speak the Edo/Bini language says the same thing. You will however notice some Oza and Iyeke-Orhiomwon accent  and this to a very negligible extent.No dialect in Edo language.
Some years back,as undergraduates in a Nigerian university, my Esan friend and I were talking up two Esan girls of incredible beauty(Esan girls can be extremely beautiful)and they lapsed into Esan to talk to themselves(the girls). My friend said he did not understand what they were saying. I understood everything.They were speaking,as he said,Igueben. Maybe I can call Igueben a dialect of the Bini language!
The Biniman speaks Edo.The word`Benin`or `Bini`is unknown to Edos.The origin has been attributed to Omonoyan(Oranmiyan)to describe the land he sojourned. And some other people say it is Hausa from `Birnin`.No two or more Bini people having a conversation would ever use the words Benin city and Bini. The city is `Oredo`and the language is `Edo`.You were right.

Are you sure the Edo language doesn't have dialects?

.