Part 1
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:
—Obvious print and punctuation errors were corrected.
—Whereas adequate characters are not available, superscript has been rendered as a^b and a^{bc}.
A POLYGLOT OF FOREIGN PROVERBS
COMPRISING
FRENCH, ITALIAN, GERMAN, DUTCH, SPANISH, PORTUGUESE, AND DANISH, WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
AND A GENERAL INDEX.
BY HENRY G. BOHN.
LONDON: HENRY G. BOHN, YORK STREET, COVENT GARDEN. MDCCCLVII.
PREFACE.
WHILE engaged in editing my Handbook of English Proverbs, it occurred to me that a Collection of Foreign Proverbs, arranged in monographs, and brought as far as possible into juxta-position by a General Index, would be an interesting volume, as well to the ordinary reader as to the linguist. And it happened that more than one public writer, in reviewing my Handbook, suggested nearly the same idea, which determined me to realise it as speedily as other engagements would permit.
After a lapse of more than two years, and much patient labour, during intervals of business or hours snatched from repose, I am enabled to present my gleanings to the public, and hope they will not be found deficient of grain.
It will be seen that many of the proverbs are quite new to the English reader, and that others, hitherto supposed to be essentially, if not exclusively, English, are common to several other languages.
A task so various and complicated could not well be executed without aid, nor do I pretend to be master of all the languages included. Accordingly, I sought the assistance of competent scholars, and have great pleasure in here proclaiming my acknowledgments to them. After the groundwork of the volume had been laid by selections from a great variety of sources, an operation in which Mr. W. K. Kelly was my principal collaborateur, I was aided in correcting the Italian by Signor Pistrucci, the Spanish by Señor Yrazoqui and the Chevalier Francisque Michel, the Portuguese by Senhôr Guerra, the Danish by Miss Rowan, and the Dutch by Mr. John van Baalen, of Rotterdam. It seemed to me advisable, to secure all possible accuracy, that each foreign language should be read over by a native of the country.
For the English translations (excepting those from the Danish) I am myself mainly responsible, as, where those already existing did not satisfy me, I generally substituted others. I have, however, been very forbearing towards some pleasant bits of doggerel and alliteration found in early volumes, and have occasionally indulged in similar playfulness of my own. One so deeply immersed in Proverb-lore may, perhaps, be forgiven for having imbibed such a tendency.
In the Index, a single line is often made to represent a whole group, although the several translations may not be exactly the same. That adopted as the key, being the last thought, ought to be the best. The running lines at the top indicate the pages of each of the several languages, so that by a comparison of them with the figures of reference below, it will be easy to see what monograph a proverb belongs to, without actually turning to the page.
HENRY G. BOHN.
August 30, 1857.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
FRENCH PROVERBS 1- 64 ITALIAN 65-132 GERMAN 133-192 SPANISH 193-262 PORTUGUESE 263-295 DUTCH 296-345 DANISH 346-403 ENGLISH INDEX 405-579
FRENCH PROVERBS.
A.
A barbe de fol apprend-on à raire. _On a fool’s beard the barber learns to shave._
A beau demandeur, beau refuseur. _Handsomely asked, handsomely refused._
A beau jeu beau retour. _One good turn deserves another._
A beau mentir qui vient de loin. _He may lie boldly who comes from afar._
A bon appétit il ne faut point de sauce. _Hunger is the best sauce._
A bon chat bon rat. _To a good cat a good rat._
A bon cheval point d’éperon. _Spur not a willing horse._
A bon chien il ne vient jamais un bon os. _A good dog never gets a good bone._
Abondance de biens ne nuit pas. _Store is no sore._
A bon entendeur demi-mot. _A word to the wise._
A bon pêcheur échappe anguille. _An eel escapes from a good fisherman._
A bon vin point d’enseigne. _Good wine needs no sign._
A brebis tondue Dieu mesure le vent. _God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb._
Absent le chat, les souris dansent. _When the cat’s away the mice will play._
Absent n’est point sans coulpe ni présent sans excuse. _Absent, none without blame; present, none without excuse._
A carême-prenant chacun a besoin de sa poële. _At shrove-tide every one has need of his frying-pan._
A celui qui a son pâté au four on peut donner de son gâteau. _To one who has a pie in the oven you may give a bit of your cake._
A chacun son fardeau pèse. _Every one feels his own burden heavy._
A chair de loup sauce de chien. _For wolf’s flesh dog sauce._
A chaque fou plaît sa marotte. _Every fool likes his bauble._
A chaque jour suffit sa peine. _Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof._
A chaque saint son cierge. _To every saint his candle._
A chemin battu ne croît point d’herbe. _No grass grows on a beaten road._
Acheter chat en poche. _To buy a cat in a poke._
A cheval donné, il ne faut point regarder à la bouche. _Look not a gift horse in the mouth._
A chose faite conseil pris. _When a thing is done advice comes too late._
A confesseurs, médecins, avocats, la vérité ne cèle de ton cas. _From confessors, doctors, and lawyers, do not conceal the truth of your case._
Adieu paniers, vendanges sont faites. _Farewell baskets, the vintage is ended._
A dur âne dur aiguillon. _For a stubborn ass a hard goad._
A femme avare galant escroc. _A covetous woman deserves a swindling gallant._
A force de mal aller tout ira bien. _By dint of going wrong all will come right._
A fripon fripon et demi. _To a rogue a rogue and a half._
A goupil endormi rien ne lui chet en gueule. _Nothing falls into the mouth of a sleeping fox._
A homme hardi fortune tend la main. _To a bold man fortune holds out her hand._
Aide-toi, le ciel t’aidera. _Help thyself and heaven will help thee._
Aime-moi un peu, mais continue. _Love me a little, but love me long._
Aimer et savoir n’ont même manière. _To love and to be wise are two different things._
Ainsi dit le renard des mûres, quand il n’en peut avoir: elles ne sont point bonnes. _The fox says of the mulberries when he cannot get at them: they are not good at all._
Aisé à dire est difficile à faire. _Easy to say is hard to do._
A la chandelle la chèvre semble demoiselle. _By candle-light a goat looks like a lady._
A la fin saura-t-on qui a mangé le lard. _In the end it will be known who ate the bacon._
A la guerre comme à la guerre. _At the wars as they do at the wars._
A l’amour et au feu on s’habitue. _One grows used to love and to fire._
A la presse vont les fous. _Fools go in throngs._
A la queue gît le venin. _In the tail lies the venom._
A l’aventure on met les ”oe]ufs couver. _Eggs are put to hatch on chance._
A laver la tête d’un âne on ne perd que le temps et la lessive. _To wash an ass’s head is but loss of time and soap._ (_To reprove a fool is but lost labour._)
A l’impossible nul n’est tenu. _No one is bound to do impossibilities._
Aller aux mûres sans crochet. _To go mulberry-gathering without a crook._
Aller en vendanges sans panier. _To go to the vintage without baskets._
A l’”oe]il malade la lumière nuit. _Light is bad for sore eyes._
A l’”oe]uvre on connaît l’ouvrier. _The workman is known by his work._
A l’ongle on connaît le lion. _You may know the lion by his claw._
A longue corde tire qui d’autrui mort désire. _He pulls at a long rope who desires another’s death._
A mal enfourner on fait les pains cornus. _Loaves put awry into the oven come out crooked._
A mal pasteur le loup chie laine. _An easy shepherd makes the wolf void wool._
A marmite qui bout mouche ne s’attaque. _Flies will not light on a boiling pot._
A mauvais chien l’on ne peut montrer le loup. _There’s no showing the wolf to a bad dog._
A méchant chien court lien. _A vicious dog must be tied short._
A merle soûl cerises sont amères. _Cherries are bitter to the glutted blackbird._
Ami de table est variable. _A table friend is changeable._
A morceau restif éperon de vin. _A restive morsel needs a spur of wine._
Amour de grands, ombre de buisson qui passe bientôt. _The friendship of great men is like the shadow of a bush, soon gone._
Amour et seigneurie ne veulent point de compagnie. _Love and lordship like no fellowship._
Amour fait moult, argent fait tout. _Love does much, money everything._
Amour soumet tout hormis c”oe]ur de félon. _Love subdues everything except the recreant’s heart._
Amour, toux, fumée, et argent, ne se peuvent cacher longuement. _Love, a cough, smoke, and money, cannot long be hid._
Amour, toux, et fumée, en secret ne font demeurée. _Love, a cough, and smoke will not remain secret._
Ane piqué convient qu’il trotte. _A goaded ass must trot._
A nouveaux seigneurs nouvelles lois. _New lords, new laws._
A nul ne peut être ami qui de soi-même est ennemi. _He cannot be a friend to any one who is his own enemy._
A paroles lourdes oreilles sourdes. _To rude words deaf ears._
A père avare enfant prodigue. _A miserly father makes a prodigal son._
A petite achoison le loup prend le mouton. _Upon a slight pretext the wolf takes the sheep._
A petite fontaine boit-on à son aise. _At a little fountain one drinks at one’s ease._
A petit mercier, petit panier. _A little pack serves a little pedlar._
Après bon vin bon cheval. _Good wine makes the horse go._
Après dommage chacun est sage. _After mischance every one is wise._
Après la fête on gratte la tête. _After a feast a man scratches his head._
Après la pluie le beau temps. _After rain fine weather._
Après la mort le médecin. _After death the doctor._
Après le fait ne vaut souhait. _After the act wishing is in vain._
Après moi le déluge. _After me the deluge._
Après perdre perd-on bien. _After one loss come many._
Après raire n’y a plus que tondre. _After shaving there’s nothing to shear._
A quelque chose malheur est bon. _Ill-luck is good for something._
A qui il meschet on lui meffaict. _Where misfortune befals injuries follow._
A qui vendez-vous vos coquilles? A ceux qui viennent de Saint Michel. _To whom do you offer your shells for sale? To people who come from Saint Michel (where shells abound)._
A qui veut rien n’est impossible. _Nothing is impossible to a willing mind._
A raconter ses maux souvent on les soulage. _By telling our woes we often assuage them._
Argent ard gent. _Money burns many._
Argent comptant porte médecine. _Ready money works great cures._
Argent emprunté porte tristesse. _Money borrowed is soon sorrowed._
Argent est rond, il faut qu’il roule. _Money is round, it must roll._
Argent reçu, le bras rompu. _The money paid, the workman’s arm is broken._
A Rome comme à Rome. _At Rome do as Rome does._
A rude âne rude ânier. _For a stubborn ass a stubborn driver._
Assez a qui se contente. _He has enough who is content._
Assez demande qui bien sert. _Who serves well asks enough._
Assez dort qui rien ne fait. _He slumbers enough who does nothing._
Assez écorche qui le pied tient. _He flays enough who holds the foot._
Assez gagne qui malheur perd. _He gains enough who loses sorrow._
Assez n’y a si trop n’y a. _There’s not enough if there’s not too much._
Assez parents, assez tourments. _Much kindred, much trouble._
Assez sait qui sait vivre et se taire. _He knows enough who knows how to live and keep his own counsel._
Assez tôt se fait ce qui bien se fait. _That is done soon enough which is well done._
Assez tôt si assez bien. _Soon enough if well enough._
A tard crie l’oiseau quand il est pris. _Too late the bird cries out when it is caught._
A toile ourdie Dieu envoie le fil. _For a web begun God sends thread._
A tout il y a commencement. _Everything must have a beginning._
A tout oiseau son nid est beau. _To every bird its nest seems fair._
A tout seigneur tout honneur. _To every lord every honour._
A trop acheter n’y a que revendre. _For overbuying there’s no help but selling again._
Au battre faut l’amour. _By beating love decays._
Au besoin l’on connaît l’ami. _A friend is known in time of need._
Au dernier les os. _For the last-comer the bones._
Au diable tant de maîtres, dit le crapaud à la herse. _To the devil with so many masters, said the toad to the harrow._
Aujourd’hui marié, demain marri. _Married to-day, marred to-morrow._
Au long aller petit fardeau pèse. _Light burdens borne far become heavy._
Au nouveau tout est beau. _What is new is always fine._
Au pays des aveugles les borgnes sont rois. _The one-eyed are kings in the land of the blind._
Au petit pourceau Dieu donne bonne racine. _God puts a good root in the little pig’s way._
A un pauvre homme sa vache meurt et au riche son enfant. _Death takes the poor man’s cow and the rich man’s child._
Au plus débile la chandelle à la main. _The weakest must hold the candle._
Au premier coup ne chet pas l’arbre. _The tree does not fall at the first stroke._
Au prêter ange, au rendre diable. _In borrowing an angel, in repaying a devil._
Au prêter cousin germain, au rendre fils de putain. _At borrowing cousin german, at repaying son of a whore._
Aussi tôt meurt veau que vache. _As soon dies the calf as the cow._
Autant chemine un homme en un jour qu’un limaçon en cent ans. _A man travels as far in a day as a snail in a hundred years._
Autant dépend chiche que large, et à la fin plus davantage. _The niggard spends as much as he who is liberal, and in the end more._
Autant de têtes, autant d’avis. _So many men, so many minds._
Autant de trous, autant de chevilles. _A peg for every hole._
Autant pèche celui qui tient le sac que celui qui met dedans. _He sins as much who holds the bag as he who puts into it._
Autant vaut bien battre que mal battre. _You may as well give a good beating as a bad one._
Autant vaut bien battu que mal battu. _One may as well be well beaten as badly beaten._
Autant vaut être mordu d’un chien que d’une chienne. _It is all one whether you are bit by a dog or a bitch._
Autant vaut l’homme comme il s’estime. _A man is valued according to his own estimate of himself._
Autre temps, autres m”oe]urs. _Other times, other manners._
Aux grands maux les grands remèdes. _Desperate ills require desperate remedies._
A vaillant homme courte épée. _A short sword for a brave man._
Avec du temps et de la paille les nèfles mûrissent. _With time and straw medlars ripen._
Avec un Si on mettrait Paris dans une bouteille. _With the help of an If you might put Paris into a bottle._
A vieille mule frein doré. _A gilt bridle for an old mule._
A vieux comptes nouvelles disputes. _Old reckonings breed new disputes._
Avoir des amis en paradis et en enfer. _To have friends both in heaven and hell._
B.
Bâton porte paix. _A stick is a peacemaker._
Battre le chien devant le lion. _To beat the dog in presence of the lion._
Beaucoup de mémoire et peu de jugement. _Much memory and little judgment._
Beauté et folie sont souvent en compagnie. _Beauty and folly are often companions._
Belle, bonne, riche, et sage, est une femme en quatre étages. _Fair, good, rich, and wise, is a woman four stories high._
Belle chose est tôt ravie. _Fair things are soon snatched away._
Belle fille et méchante robe trouvent toujours qui les accroche. _A fine girl and a tattered gown always find something to hook them._
Belle hôtesse c’est un mal pour la bourse. _A handsome hostess is bad for the purse._
Belle promesse fol lie. _A fair promise binds a fool._
Besoin fait vieille trotter. _Need makes the old woman trot._
Bien embarrassé celui qui tient la queue de la poële. _He has enough to do who holds the handle of the frying-pan._
Bien dire fait rire; bien faire fait taire. _Saying well causes a laugh; doing well produces silence._
Bien est larron qui larron dérobe. _He is a thief indeed who robs a thief._
Bien nourri et mal appris. _Well fed but ill taught._
Bien vient à mieux, et mieux à mal. _Good comes to better, and better to bad._
Boire et manger, coucher ensemble, c’est mariage, ce me semble. _To eat and drink, and sleep together, is marriage, methinks._
Bon avocat, mauvais voisin. _A good lawyer is a bad neighbour._
Bon charretier tourne en petit lieu. _A good driver turns in a small space._
Bon chien chasse de race. _A good dog hunts by instinct._
Bon droit a besoin d’aide. _A good cause needs help._
Bon fait voler bas à cause des branches. _It is well to fly low on account of the branches._
Bon gaignage fait bon potage. _Fat pastures make fat venison._
Bon guet chasse malaventure. _Good watching drives away ill-luck._
Bon jour bonne ”oe]uvre. _The better day the better deed._
Bonjour lunettes, adieu fillettes. _Good morrow spectacles, farewell lasses._
Bon nageur de n’être noyé n’est pas sûr. _A good swimmer is not safe against drowning._
Bonne bête s’échauffe en mangeant. _A good beast heats with eating._
Bonne epée, point querelleur. _A good swordsman is never quarrelsome._
Bonne est la maille qui sauve le denier. _’Tis a good farthing that saves a penny._
Bonne journée fait qui de fol se délivre. _He does a good day’s work who rids himself of a fool._
Bonne renommée vaut mieux que ceinture dorée. _Good repute is better than a golden belt._
Bon sang ne peut mentir. _Good blood will never lie._
Bons mots n’épargnent nuls. _Witticisms spare no one._
Bons nageurs sont à la fin noyés. _Good swimmers are drowned at last._
Bouche serrée, mouche n’y entre. _No flies get into a shut mouth._
Bourdes vrayes ne plaisent jamais. _True jokes never please._
Brebis comptées, le loup les mange. _Counted sheep are eaten by the wolf._
Brebis qui bêle perd sa goulée. _The sheep that bleats loses its mouthful._
Brebis trop apprivoisée de trop d’agneaux est tettée. _The sheep that is too tame is sucked by too many lambs._
Bûche tortue fait bon feu. _A crooked log makes a good fire._
C.
Calomniez, calomniez: il en reste toujours quelque chose. _Slander! slander! some of it always sticks._
Cela fait venir de l’eau au moulin. _That brings water to the mill._
Celui à bon gage du chat qui en tient la peau. _He has a good pledge of the cat who has her skin._
Celui est homme de bien qui est homme de biens. _A good man is a man of goods._
Celui gouverne bien mal le miel qui n’en taste et ses doigts n’en lèche. _He is a very bad manager of honey who leaves nothing to lick off his fingers._
Celui peut hardiment nager à qui l’on soutient le menton. _He may swim boldly who is held up by the chin._
Celui qui est adonné aux dez, le diable le tire par le nez. _The devil leads him by the nose who the dice too often throws._
Celui qui est sur les épaules d’un géant voit plus loin que celui qui le porte. _He who rides on the giant’s shoulders sees further than he who carries him._
Celui qui tient la queue de la poële risque de se brûler. _He that holds the handle of the frying-pan runs the risk of burning himself._
Ce ne sont pas les plus belles qui font les grandes passions. _It is not the greatest beauties that inspire the most profound passion._
Ce n’est pas tout que des choux, il faut encore de la graisse. _It is not enough to have cabbage, one must have something to grease it._
Ce n’est rien, c’est une femme qui se noye. _It is nothing at all, only a woman drowning._
Cent ans bannière, cent ans civière. _A hundred years a banner, a hundred years a barrow._ ”_A very old proverb, signifying the changeful fortunes of great feudal families._]
Cent ans de chagrin ne payent pas un sou de dettes. _A hundred years of fretting will not pay a halfpenny of debt._
Cent ans n’est guère, mais jamais c’est beaucoup. _A hundred years is not much, but never is a long while._
Cependant le bonhomme n’a pas son sac. _But for all that the honest man has not got his purse._
Ce que fait la louve plaît au loup. _What the she-wolf does (or brings forth) pleases the he-wolf._
Ce que femme veut Dieu le veut. _What a woman wills God wills._
Ce que le gantelet gagne le gorgeret le mange. _What the gauntlet wins the gorget consumes._
Ce que l’enfant oit au foyer est bientôt connu jusqu’au moustier. _What the child hears at the fireside is soon known at the parish church._
Ce que le sobre tient au c”oe]ur est sur la langue du buveur. _What the sober man keeps in his heart is on the tongue of the drunkard._
Ce que moine pense, il ose le faire. _What a monk thinks he dares to do._
Ce qu’”oe]il ne voit, au c”oe]ur ne deult. _What the eye sees not the heart rues not._
Ce que poulain prend en jeunesse il le continue en vieillesse. _What the colt learns in youth he continues in old age._
Ce qui est différé n’est pas perdu. _All is not lost that is delayed._
Ce qui nuit à l’un duit à l’autre. _What is bad for one is good for another._
Ce qui suffit ne fut jamais peu. _What is enough was never little._
Ce qui vient de la flûte s’en retourne au tambour. _What comes from the fife goes back to the drum._ (_Lightly come, lightly go; or, what is got over the devil’s back is spent under his belly._)
Ce qu’on apprend au berceau dure jusqu’au tombeau. _What is learned in the cradle lasts till the grave._
Ce sont les pires bourdes que les vraies. _The worst jests are those that are true._
C’est folie de béer contre un four. _It is folly to gape against an oven._
C’est folie de faire son médecin son héritier. _He is a fool who makes his physician his heir._
C’est folie de faire un maillet de son poing. _He is a fool who makes a mallet of his fist._
C’est la cour du roi Petaud, chacun y est maître. _Like King Petaud’s court, where every one is master._
C’est la maîtresse-roue qui fait tourner le moulin. _It is the master-wheel that makes the mill go round._
C’est le chien de Jean de Nivelle, il s’enfuit quand on l’appelle. _He is like Jean de Nivelle’s dog, that runs away when he is called._
C’est le ton qui fait la musique. _It is the tone that makes the music._
C’est le valet du diable, il fait plus qu’on ne lui commande. _He is the devil’s valet, he does more than he is ordered._
C’est partout comme chez nous. _’Tis everywhere the same as here._
C’est peu que de courir, il faut partir à point. _It is not enough to run; one must start in time._
C’est quand l’enfant est baptisé qu’il arrive des parrains. _When the child is christened you will have godfathers enough._
C’est toujours la plus mauvaise roue qui crie. _The worst wheel always creaks most._
C’est trop aimer quand on en meurt. _It is loving too much to die of love._
C’est un cheval à quatre pieds blancs. _He is a horse with four white feet (i.e., he is unlucky)._
C’est un long jour qu’un jour sans pain. _’Tis a long day a day without bread._
Chacun à son goût. _Every man to his taste._
Chacun a un fou dans sa manche. _Every one has a fool in his sleeve._
Chacun chien qui aboye ne mord pas. _Not every dog that barks bites._
Chacun dit: J’ai bon droit. _Every one says: My right is good._
Chacun doit balayer devant sa porte. _Every one should sweep before his own door._
Chacun le sien, ce n’est pas trop. _Every one his own, is but fair._
Chacun n’est pas aise qui danse. _Not every one that dances is glad._
Chacun porte sa croix. _Every one bears his cross._
Chacun pour soi et Dieu pour tous. _Every one for himself and God for all._
Chacun prêche pour son saint. _Every one preaches for his own saint._
Chacun prend son plaisir où il le trouve. _Every one takes his pleasure where he finds it._
Chacun se fait fouetter à sa guise. _Every one takes his flogging in his own way._