Yoruba Proverbs

Seeks to propagate Yoruba proverbs and increase their usage thereby preserving the Yoruba language and the wisdom of the Yoruba people for posterity.

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ìfura loògùn àgbà; páńṣá ò fura, páńṣá jóná; àjà ò fura, àjà jìn; bí onílé ò fura, olè ni yóò kó o. /
Vigilance is the hallmark of elders; the (dried) calabash plant that wasn't vigilant, got burnt; the ceiling that wasn't vigilant, caved in and any resident who is not vigilant, will have his/her home burgled.

[Small risks become major disasters when neglected; anticipate and prepare for minor dangers, lest they become major catastrophes.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ìhòhò là ńse ẹyẹ kòwéè; òru là ńjẹ ẹyẹ kòwéè, a kì í jẹ ẹ́ lọ́ọ̀sán; apá ọ̀tún ẹyẹ kòwéè ni wọ́n ńjẹ, wọn kì í jẹ apá òsì. Wàhálà ṣe wá pọ̀ tó báyìí, lórí ẹyẹ kòwéè tí kò tóbi tó adìyẹ? /
You must be stark naked when cooking the kòwéè bird; you must eat it in the dead of night, never during the day; you may eat only the right half, never the left. Why all this hassle for a bird far smaller than a chicken?

[Cost should not exceed benefit; the juice should be worth the squeeze; never make a mountain out of a molehill.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Thank you for the kind comments.

[Dove (Luke 3:22) @segunbiosu]

@yoruba_proverbs I stumbled on your page and fell in love with it instantly. For more than a year, never will a day passes without learning one thing or the other on Yoruba proverbs.
As far as I am concerned, your piece is second to none.
Love you all.

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Bí ọmọdé ò bá gbọ́n ọgbọ́n 'gbà', àgbàlagbà á máa gbọ́n ọgbọ́n 'múwá' /
If a youngster lacks the discretion to recognise when it is proper to give, an elderly person is wise to put him through.

[Be alert to your responsibilities; whoever lacks the understanding of his or her responsibility should be firmly, but most-assuredly reminded]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Bí ọmọdé ò bá gbọ́n ọgbọ́n 'gbà', àgbàlagbà á máa gbọ́n ọgbọ́n 'múwá' /
If a youngster lacks the discretion to recognise when it is proper to give, an elderly person is wise to put him through.

[Be alert to your; Whoever lacks the understanding of his or her responsibility should be firmly, but most-assuredly reminded]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

@Hoyedortoon Thank you

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Bí èèyàn ó ti tó, kò ni jẹ́ kó bínú, bí èèyàn ó ti mọ, kò ní jẹ́ kó ní sùúrù. /
Our aspirations restrain us from anger, but destiny limits us by stealing the patience we need to fulfil them.

[Regardless of our aspirations, our destiny dictates the events of our life.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ẹni bá ran ẹlẹ́mu lẹ́rù, kò má ṣe pàntèté, k�� oore bá lè ní ọpẹ́ nínú. /
If you are going to help a palmwine seller carry his ware, never balance it on your head hands-free, so the help can earn due gratitude.

[Help given recklessly is scarcely appreciated; be intentional and sensitive when helping others.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ẹranko tí orí yọ lẹ́nu tàkúté, gbogbo ohun tó bá jọ panpee ni í sá fún. /
Any animal lucky enough to escape a big trap, will run away from anything that even vaguely resembles a smaller one.

[Once beaten, twice shy; escape a catastrophe and you'll fear a trifle; past pain distorts how we read the present; pain teaches powerfully, but rarely in proportion.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ẹni tí ò sinmi owó wíwà kò má ṣe fi ẹlẹ́wọ̀n ṣe yẹ̀yẹ́. /
Anyone with unconscionable appetite for money should not be mocking prisoners.

[Greed is it's own form of captivity; a greedy fellow is just as trapped as a convict.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ọmọdé ò mọ oògùn ó ńpeé lẹ́ẹ̀fọ́; kò mọ̀ pé ikú tó pa bàbá òun ni. /
A youngster scoffed at an enchanted soup and simplistically saw it as mere vegetable soup, oblivious that it was exactly what killed his father.

[Naivety can be costly; those who scoff at lessons of the past are doomed to repeat their mistakes.]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ẹní bá ja'lè lẹ́ẹ̀kan, tó bá daṣọ àrán bo orí, aṣọ olè ló dà bo'ra./
Whoever steals just once, even if covered in velvet, remains a thief, still.

[Dishonesty permanently stains; steal once and you are a thief forever, even if you are adorned in
expensive clothing: outward wealth and elegant clothing cannot erase a dishonest past]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ọmọ owú fi ojú àdá rí nǹkan lágbẹ̀dẹ kó tó di ohun tó ńfi koríko ṣẹ̀sín lẹ́gàn /
The cutlass becomes priceless in the field only because it first endured the blacksmith's heavy hammer at the forge.

[Nothing ventured, nothing gained: no guts, no glory]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

@AbiodunBorisade Correct for the most part. A little typo changed the meaning however. It's "dare" not "dear*. But "waylay" is most appropriate.

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Baálé tí ò ní'ṣẹ́ ló ńjúwe ibi tí àṣá tí gbé adìyẹ. /
Only an idle elder has the time to explain exactly where and how the hawk snatched a hen.

[Even, if you have nothing to do, you don't have to show everyone; don't over-explain or over-analyse; focus on the essential elements]

[Yoruba Proverbs @yoruba_proverbs]

Ẹranko kí ẹranko tó bá pọ̀n sí ẹ̀yìn ẹkùn, inú ẹkùn nií kángun sí. /
Any animal that allowed itself to be backed by the leopard would find itself in its stomach.

[Trusting a known threat can lead to harm; be wary of offers that are too good to be true; don't put yourself under the power of someone who has every reason to harm you.]