Monday, October 11, 2021

Bantu proverbs from Cameroon (5)

Source: Proverbs from West Africa by C. J. Bender, 1924. Online at the Internet Archive. The book includes only the English text, and nothing more specific than "Bantu" for the source (there are several Bantu peoples who live in Cameroon). See more proverbs from this collection. I've made a slideshow just of this collection also (adding new slides gradually):

Bender was a missionary in Cameroon, and you can find out more about the peoples of Cameroon at Wikipedia.

Below are the proverbs I chose from this book; when I've rephrased, I've included the book's version in parentheses. If there is no version in parentheses, that means I didn't make any changes. You can see the whole slideshow here: African Proverbs.


A basket that falls into the river will not return.

(A basket which has fallen into the river will never come back.)


A bird in one's hand is worth two in the woods.


Don't play with the dog's tail, and you won't get bit.

(Do not play with the tail of a dog, and you will not be bitten.)


Even the brightest fire goes out by morning.

(Even the brightest fire will be extinct in the morning.)


Two goats in the same stall will never agree.

(Two he-goats in one and the same stall will never agree.)












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