Arabic proverbs, or the manners and cutoms of the modern egyptian illustrated from their proverbial...

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title : Arabic Proverbs, Or, The Manners and Customs of the ModeEgyptians : Illustrated From Their Proverbial Sayings CurrenCairo 1St Paperback Ed.

author : Burckhardt, John Lewis

publisher : Taylor & Francis Routledge

isbn10 | asin : 0700701850

print isbn13 : 9780700701858

ebook isbn13 : 9780203985960language : English

subject Proverbs, Arabic--Egypt--Cairo, Proverbs, Arabic--Translatiointo English.

publication date : 1984

lcc : PN6519.A7A82 1984eb

ddc : 398/.9/927

subject : Proverbs, Arabic--Egypt--Cairo, Proverbs, Arabic--Translatiointo English.

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age a-1RABIC PROVERBS


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age a-3RABIC PROVERBSrhe Manners and Customsf theODERN EGYPTIANS,ustratedom their proverbial sayings current at Cairo

ranslated and Explainedy the lateOHN LEWIS BURCKHARDTtroduction byE.Bosworth

rofessor of Arabic Studiesniversity of Manchester

ONDON AND NEW YORK




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age a-4RABIC PROVERBSaperback editionrst published in the UK byurzon Presshis edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.

o purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledges collection of thousands of eBooks plea

o to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.Introduction Curzon Press Ltd. 1984BN 0-203-98596-6 Master e-book ISBNBN 0 7007 0185 0 (Print Edition)ritish Library Cataloguing in Publication Dataurckhardt, Johann Ludwigrabic Proverbs.4th ed.Proverbs, Arabic-EgyptTitle

98.9927 PN6519.A7BN 0-7007-0185-0




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age iNTRODUCTIONhe Swiss John Lewis Burckhardt (17841817) was, together with the Dane Carsten Niebuhr, the Englishman Williarowne and the German Ulrich Seetzen, one of the pioneers of European exploration in the remoter and less accessibarts of the Arab world. Born into a prosperous bourgeois family, he was brought up in Basle and later studied at Leind Gttingen. He then came to England in 1806 and offered his services to Sir Joseph Bankes and the Association foromoting the Discovery of the Interior of Africa, the idea being that the Niger basin should be approached not from

West African coast, as explorers like Mungo Park were attempting, but overland from Egypt and North Africa, taking

dvantage of Muslim pilgrimage caravans returning to Fezzan and Timbuctu. This was to be the great design whichominated the rest of Burckhardts short life, but whose fulfilment he was never to see. Since it was impossible fornyone to undertake such a journey except in the guise of an indigenous Muslim pilgrim or merchant, the next years ourckhardts life were to be devoted to his acquiring as near-perfect as possible a knowledge of the Arabic language f Muslim manners and customs.

those spacious days of the early nineteenth century, when travel was at the best of times slow and when explorers omote corners of the world were liable to be absent for stretches of several years, the African Association was quiteilling to subsidise Burckhardt for a whole decade ahead. In the event, when he left England for Malta and beyond in809 at the age of 25, he had only eight years of life left, but into this period he packed an immense amount of arduouavelling, and he gathered rich topographical and ethnographical material from regions unknown or little known toestern travellers. He had small chance during his own lifetime to put this into literary form, but after his death thefrican Association financed and superintended the publication of such works as his Travels in Nubia(edited by Lt.

William Leake, 1819, to which was prefixed an importantMemoirof Burckhardt), Travels in Syria and the Holy Lan

d. Leake, 1822), travels in Arabia(edited by Sir William Ouseley, 1829), and finally,Notes on the Bedouin andWahabis(ed Ouseley, 1831). As may be deduced from the titles of his books, Burckhardts travels took him from thepper Euphrates valley and the Syrian Desert fringes to the Sinai Desert; and in Africa, up the Nile valley, with thearsome desert crossing between Aswan and Berber, and across the Red Sea to Arabia and the Hijaz. It was on thistter journey that Buckhardt was able in 181415 to visit the Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina in the guise of a pilgrurckhardt was by no means the first European to penetrate thither, but the feat was still a bold and dangerous one anmained so even at the time

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age iif Richard Burtons visit in 1853. All these journeyings, punctuated though they were by recuperative spells in Cairolexandria, took their toll of Burckhardts health, and it was in Cairo in October 1817 that his worn-out body fell asler ever.

rom the time when he had begun the academic study of Arabic in 1808 in London and Cambridge, Burckhardt acquprofound knowledge of the language and its literature, and this was perfected by his years of travel and residence inear East. He always passed there as Shaikh Ibrhm, and it is under this name that British travellers and residents e Levant, such as Lady Hester Stanhope, James Silk Buckingham and William Turner, record their contacts with hi

lthough he never became a Muslim, Muslims seem to have found in Burckhardts religious nature a sympathetic ansponsive chord. When in Cairo, he usually lived completely in the native fashion, and he was keenly interested in alpects of Islamic life, including the expression of the folk-consciousness through its popular and proverbial sayings.

egan collecting these last during his travels and the intervening periods of residence in Egypt, and he built theseersonal acquisitions round the nucleus of an early 18th century collection of proverbs by one Shaik Sharaf ad-Din ibsad. By May 1817, five months before his death, Burckhardt was able to send off to Sir Joseph Bankes his Sinai traurnal and his collection of Arabic proverbs, with an apology that the latter was so full of Arabic script and hence w

e expensive to print; and in the following month, he sent off to the Rev. William Hamilton, secretary of the Africanssociation, a collection of the popular sayings of Cairo in the local dialect. However, it was not until 1830 that Arabroverbs,edited by Sir William Ouseley, finally appeared.ike the Chinese, the Semitic peoples have always had a particular taste for aphorisms and proverbs. For the Hebrewe see this taste displayed in the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes; for the Arabs, we have the enthusiastic coining e of proverbs down to the present day. The oldest sayings are often simple comparisons, like more generous than

of (a pre-Islamic hero famous for his liberality) or more voracious than a camel-tick. Someyings sprang from the Arab tribal conflicts or from incidents of Islamic history, but not infrequently, the origins are

uite obscure. In most of these old proverbs, however, the world of the Bedouin and his desert habitat are basicspirations. The Arab philologists made collections of these proverbs and endeavoured to explain them; and modernientalists and folklorists have been equally active in recording proverbs from all parts of the Arab world.urckhardts proverbs are couched in dialect, although the fact that he set them down in Arabic script, and only rarelyommented on the actual pronunciation, inevitably gives them a

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age iiiassical cast. Naturally, the genre tends to flourish above all in the colloquial; of the 3,200 proverbs given in the

upreme collection of modern Egyptian proverbs, Taimr Pashas al-Amthl al mmiyya,the greater pae in Egyptian dialect. With todays more liberal outlook, we may regret that Burckhardt excluded from his collectiome of the more earthy and racy proverbs, for vigorous expression is the quintessence of an effective proverb; but th

nes which he did set down are sufficient to convey to us something of the flavour of Egyptian popular life and attituthe pre-industrial period.

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age ivRANSLATORS PREFACE.

MANY of the proverbial sayings translated in this volume, were collected by Sheref ed dn Ibn Asad,

a native of Cairo, who lived, it is said, early in the last century, but neverquired a very high literary reputation. The translator found those Proverbs written upon nine or ten leaves in the

ommon-place book of a sheikh, with whom he was acquainted in this city; but they wanted explanation or comment

f those he has omitted a considerable number, many being altogether uninteresting, and others so grossly indelicatee could not venture to lay them before the public, although it must be acknowledged that they excelled in wit. Severyings which appear to have been popular in the time of Ibn Asad, are no longer current; and these the translator hasarked with an asterisk.he original collection be has augmented by some hundreds, committed to paper as he heard them quoted in generalciety or in the bzr. Where the sense of a Proverb did not seem quite clear, he

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age vas explained it, or at least noticed the meaning commonly assigned to it, as well as any peculiarity of languageherever the provincial idiom differs from the learned Arabic. In this labour he was assisted by many intelligent Arabf Cairo. The natives, in general, are so fond of figurative language and of witty allusions and comparisons taken fromw life, that these sayings are constantly quoted on every common occasion, and express the tendency or moral of an

vent much better than could be done by a long or flowery speech. Many of these sayings are rhythmical, and sometime rhymes are extremely happy; but the drollery is lost in a plain translation, which has been rendered as literal as

ossible, and in which the true sense has never been sacrificed to elegance. They are written in the vulgar dialect of

airo, such as every inhabitant understands and every one uses, except perhaps a few who affect to despise the languf the lower classes. These Proverbs offer a genuine specimen of the Arabic at present spoken in the Egyptian capitalnd the same, or very nearly the same, as that used in the towns of the Delta.hese sayings are useful, as they serve to show us how the Arabs judge of men and things, and in this respect it must knowledged that many are dictated by wisdom and sagacity. Several Scriptural sayings and maxims of ancient sagill be found here naturalized among Arabs; as well as some

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age viroverbs which have generally been supposed of European origin.

Meidani has collected many sayings that were current among the ancient Arabs at the most brilliant period of their soate and of their language; but the present collection offers to our view a different nation and different manners; it alsxhibits in some places an adulterated dialect, and alludes to vices which were probably but little known among therefathers of the Egyptians. It proves, however, that the language is not by any means so corrupted as various travel

ave imagined, and that the principles of virtue and honour, of friendship and true charity, of independence andenerosity, are perfectly well known to the modern inhabitants of Egypt, although very few among them take the trou

f regulating their conduct accordingly.he number of nine hundred and ninety-nineProverbs might easily have been augmented by one, but the translatorfrains from completing the thousand, adopting here a notion prevalent among Arabs, that even numbers are unluck

nd that any thing perfect in its quantity is particularly affected by the evil eye. He does not pretend to possess such aorough knowledge of the learned Arabic as would have enabled him to indicate every instance of discrepancy betwe language of these popular sayings and that used by the ancient Arabian

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age viiriters. His long residence at Cairo rendered the vulgar idiom of its inhabitants familiar to him; and knowing how fewecimens of that idiom have hitherto been published, he flatters himself with the hope that this collection may intere

nd gratify the Orientalist, and that his explanations will be regarded as the hasty work of a traveller subject to numerconveniences, and who may, in some cases, have been deceived by erroneous or defective information, and notiticised as the elaborate treatise of a learned Arabic scholar or grammarian, surrounded by all the means of making

omposition perfect.AIRO,25th of March,1817.

OTE OF THE EDITOR.o Burckhardts short Preface a few lines must here be added. That accomplished traveller has sufficiently explainedotives for withholding from publication several Proverbs which had found a place in his original collection. It seem

ecessary that the Editor should account why this volume does not contain even so many as Burckhardt evidentlytended to publish (nine hundred and ninety-nine). The numerical series is interrupted in various parts of theanuscript, not by any accidental injury, mutilation, or loss of leaves, but by chasms, which amount in some instancehole decades of Proverbs; the most considerable deficiency occurring where (in the middle

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age viiif a page) immediately after No. 516 follows No. 577. These omissions may not unreasonably be supposed to haveisen from the writers mistake of one figure for another; in fact the 1 of No. 516 so much resembles a 7, (being nearined to the 5 by a stroke of the pen at its upper part,) that it might easily deceive the eye. Some allowance must alsoade for the effect of those inconvenient circumstances to which our ingenious traveller has above alluded. Underhatever circumstances of difficulty, danger, or inconvenience, he may have collected and explained these Proverbs,ork offers a variety of curious and original information respecting the manners, customs, and opinions of an

xtraordinary people; while his philological remarks must prove highly useful and interesting to all who are desirous

nderstanding, with critical accuracy, the modern Arabic dialect used at Cairo.the composition of this work, as of his volumes already published, he adopted the language of our country, andenerally with sufficient correctness; it has been, however, in some places, necessary to substitute an English for areign idiom, Burckhardts meaning being on all occasions most scrupulously preserved; even where his translation

ertain terms or phrases (which the Arabic scholar will soon discover) appeared more literal than decent, it has beenndeavoured by circumlocution to express the sense without offending delicacy. These and the omission of a fewroverbs (found to agree most exactly both in words and signification with others given under preceding numbers)onstitute the only liberties which have been assumed by the Editor.

WILLIAM OUSELEY.ondon, May 21st,1830.

RRATUM. Proverb No. 138. For read

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age 1RABIC PROVERBS OF THE MODERN EGYPTIANS.

o. 1.thousand raps at the door, but no salute or invitation from within.

his is said of a persons fruitless endeavours to become intimate with another.

Let them strike or slap) a thousand necks, but not mine.

mong the Arabs it is usual to strike the neck and not the ears. A blow on the neck is con-


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age 2dered a much greater affront than a slap on the face. Not only the neck, but a blow struck upon the neck, is expresse

e Egyptian dialect by . Thus I struck him a blow on his neck, is exactly equivalent in itseaning to the English phrase, I boxed his ears.

thousand cranes in the air are not worth one sparrow in the fist.

he crane is a bird common in the Delta, particularly about the Lake of Menzaleh. properly signifies hand, or palm of the hand; but in Egypt is generally used for the fist.

the moon be with thee, thou needest not to care about the stars.

a worthless fellow be with thee, do not let him go, or else one worse will come to thee.he general meaning is, that we should bear present ills rather than, by endeavouring to remove them, expose ourselvgreater. This saying


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age 3often quoted with respect to servants, whose dishonesty and insolence are subjects of universal complaint througho

gypt. The word in common acceptation signifies to leave a thing, to let it go out of ones hands. The

ord is used in Egypt to express a low, disorderly, unprincipled charactera base, worthless fellow.

the turbans complain of a slight wind, what must be the state of the inner drawers?his proverb is quoted when the citizens of Cairo murmur at oppression, the peasants having much greater reason for

eing discontented. flatus, in the Egyptian dialect used for plural of

, drawers worn under the great trowsers.

my husband consent, why should the kadhys interference be necessary.

his means in general that when two parties who have contended agree to be reconciled, the arbitration of a third persnot requisite. But the saying more particularly alludes to divorces, which in many cases are determined by the kadh

in the Egyptian dialect, signifiesthe meddling, officious interference of a third person.




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thou forgettest to say Praise be to God in what other words wilt thou pray?his is addressed to persons who neglect the principal object or part of their business, and execute only that which is

ast important. means the expression , which commences the Fateha,or first chapter of the

oran, and should be recited in every prayer. in the Egyptian dialect for . The Egyptians alwa

ut this after the verb in interrogations, as whilst the Syrians invariably place it before, and say

thy neighbour dislike thee, change the gate of thy house.

he intimacy with neighbours is much greater in the East than in Europe; and the repose of a family often depends upe harmony subsisting between it and those who occupy the adjoining house.

0.thy neighbour shaves (somebody), do thou soak (the head of the person whom he shaves).lways endeavour to act agreeably to the wishes




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f thy neighbour. to wet, meaning here to wet the head with a lather of soap before the application of a razor.

1.God proposes the destruction of an ant, he allows wings to grow upon her.

he sudden elevation of persons to stations above their means or capacities, may often cause their ruin.

2.thou seest a one-eyed person pass by, turn up a stone.

he people of Cairo turn up a stone or break a water-jar behind the back of any person whom they dislike, just on hisaving them, hoping thereby to prevent his return; this is a kind of incantation. The term one-eyedhere expresses a

erson disagreeable on any account. The Arabs regard a one-eyed man as of bad omen , and nobody wisheeet him.

3.

thou seest a wall inclining, run from under it.

y from him whose power is tottering, or whom dangers threaten. In the Egyptian dialect is used for




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4.the dishes increase in number, it becomes known that they are from the houses of neighbours.the East, neighbours frequently supply the wants of their friends kitchen on occasion of family feasts. This saying

mplies that when a person makes too expensive an entertainment, it is evident that he has borrowed from others.

n the plural ) means not only a colour, but, among the Egyptians, a dish of dressed victuals.

5.the sailors become too numerous, the ship sinks.

instead of . The is seldom pronounced in Egypt.

6.

a serpent love thee, wear him as a necklace.dangerous people show affection towards thee, court their friendship by the most polite attention.

7.thy camel break down, put on an ass-load.

uit thy business to thy circumstances.




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8.

the winding-sheet be ragged, and the corpse-washer one-eyed, and the bier broken, and the buriround a saltish soil, then truly the deceased must belong to the inhabitants of hell.

everything in a persons business goes wrong, he must be totally ruined at last. is properly a stand or frame onhich the coffin rests before it is removed to the grave.

9.mendicity should unfortunately be thy lot, knock at the large gates only.sk assistance from those only who have the power of helping thee.

0.an onion causes his loud rejoicings, what then shall we say to sugar?aid of people who bestow admiration upon trifling objects.

1.they call thee reaper, whet thy scythe.

ndeavour, even by mere appearances, to con-




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age 8nce people that thou deservest the reputation that thou enjoyest.

2.water is present for ablution, the use of sand is discontinued.

ffluence renders unnecessary what is practised during poverty. is the ablution with sand which the Turkisw prescribes when water cannot be procured

3.When the angels present themselves, the devils abscond.

4.the wind blows, it enters at every crevice.

lucky person is fortunate in the most trifling affair. plural of , a fissure in the wall.

5.there be grease on thy hand, rub it off at thy nearest friends.

et your own kindred, and not strangers, share in your superfluities, or the fragments from your




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ble. is used at Cairo for and pronounced there eed,notyed,as it ought to be.

6.thou seest him reproaching and swearing at him, know that he loves him.

e amatoribus dicitur. is commonly used at Cairo for reviling, calling opprobrious names, or swearing at aerson.

7.*the water come like a deluge, place thy son under thy feet.

ave thyself, even at the expense of thy nearest kindred or friendsa selfish principle very general in the Levant.ccording to Moslim tradition, when the deluge came and the rebel sons of Noah felt the water approach their anklesey took their little children in their arms; when the water rose higher, they placed them upon their shoulders, then upeir heads; but at last, when the flood reached to their own mouths, they put the children under their feet, endeavourikeep their own heads above the water.

8.*he thief who understands his business does not steal from his own quarter (of the town).

, able, clever, expert.




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9.t the close of the night the cries are heard.his saying is addressed to persons exulting in good fortune, to warn them of the final issue The night may have passanquilly, but at the end affrays often happen, occasioned either by drunkards, profligates coming from the houses ofublic women, or by robbers, who generally commit depredations at that time, when they suppose the inhabitants to bleep.

0.he ultimate remedy is a cautery.nothing else will avail, violent measures must be at last adopted.

1.he nuptials are the nuptials of our father, yet the people fight with us.hose who have the strongest claim find themselves dispossessed of the advantage by others. This saying alludes to aowd of fellows who have assembled at a nuptial entertainment, but beat and displace the bridegrooms children, toake room for themselves.


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2.he pregnant woman longed for it, but the nurse ate it.his proverb resembles in sense that immediately preceding. The whims of pregnant women are treated with indulgethe East as well as in Europe.

3.he miller takes (steals) handful by handful, but the Lord takes (sums up his reckoning) mule (loady mule (load).

in Egypt used for the being generally pronounced as .

4.ather be scarified with an axe than require favours from others.

for . It might likewise mean a thing, or (as hereafter remarked), and so understood

ould signify, better to be scarified with an axe than to owe or be indebted to others for anything. meaupping,also to make mere scarifications on the forehead or legsa common practice in the Levant. Among the

edouins, a father threatening his son, says, if you do so we shall cup (or scarify) y


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5.he captain (of the ship) loves thee, wipe thy hand on the sail.e who is favoured by government may do any thing with impunity.

6.Yes)I like my mother-in-law, and I like also that she should make a (disgusting) smell under myose (crepitum reddendo).his refers to a silly, obstinate fellow, who persists in longing for what offends others. In the East it is generallyupposed that a mother-in-law cannot long be on good terms with the son-in-law, and her name is commonly used as

rm expressing disagreeable kindred. Here is to be understood

7.*lay with a slave, he will show to thee his hinder parts.

ow people become insolent if you admit them to familiarity. is equivalent to or rather to




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8.splinter entered the sound eye of a one-eyed person. I wish you good night said he.

e fancied that night had arrived. This refers to those who judge the world merely by their own sensations, and suppo

at every one must feel as they do. in the Egyptian dialect, signifies any small piece of wood, straw, &c.

9.*e is hump-backed, yet whirls about.

properly expresses those tours de force practised by a rope dancer in wheeling round his whole body e head forwards.

0.e is blind, and still ogles the women.

or is commonly used at Cairo to describe the glances which a man pasthe street directs towards the shutters, behind which the women sit.




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1.*is to thee I speak, my (fair) neighbour; but truly thou art an ass.

his is said of dull persons, unable to comprehend a slight hint. A man conversing with his own wife, was desirous ofving a hint to his neighbours wife, of whom he was the gallant, and who overheard the conversation; but she did no

nderstand him, and he in a rage used the words above quoted.

2.the midwife happen to have more commiseration (for the child) than the mother, that is a corrupt

eeling.

he humane intentions of inferior officers are of little avail, if the spirit of government be unmerciful. the

idwife. used in Egypt for . may likewise be translated affection.

3.*Whatever the half-blind wife cooks for her husband, he sups on it.

ustom reconciles us to bad living. half-




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ind, sore-eyed. (The Egyptians frequently use the imprecation, blindness to thy eyes,

he of is according to the Egyptian dialect, and often prefixed to verbs; but still more commonly inyria than in Egypt.

4*.What is in the cauldron is taken out with the kitchen spoon.

very affair requires its own peculiar treatment, and its own people to bring it to a conclusion: also, to obtain

formation, the proper mode must be adopted. used in Egypt for . has many significations; i

ere means to take out. is the great kitchen ladle or wooden spoon.

5.he lazy person has no legs.

he Egyptians pronounce as if it were written loo,instead of saying lahoo.

6.he burial is attended by crowds of people, the deceased isa dog.

lluding to great honours bestowed on persons not worthy of them. signifies a burial or funeral when it ishot; i.e., attended by multitudes.




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7.lay with false coin until thou gettest a dwny.

is the old clipped silver or copper coin, likewise false coin. The Egyptians more generally use or

to express false money.Dwnyis the same aspr. To gain, begin humbly.

8.he fine pullet shows its excellence from the egg.he pullets most likely to thrive are those which cry from the very egg. This is likewise expressed by the saying

he words and are synonymous.

9.*he world is a mirror; show thyself in it, and it will reflect thy image.We may also translate thus: show thyself in it (i.e., be frank with the people), and it will let thee see its image (i.e.,eople will be frank with thee). This meaning would be more clearly expressed by the words

. In the Egyptian dialect is used for .




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0.rom the aszer (or afternoon) it appears whether the night will be clear.

his (like No. 48) means that a person gives indications of his future virtues from early youth. is much used

mong the Egyptians for .

1.ie a turban of straw round thy head, but do not forget thy engagements.

ay the fool as much as thou wilt, but observe thy promises and engagements. ribbands of straw from whic

askets are made. Idiots fasten them like turbans about their heads. signifies to tie a turban.

2.he hasty and the tardy meet at the ferry.

xtremes often meet: a ferry-boat. The ferries wait a long time on the banks of the Nile, until the complemf passengers be full,

3.ooba bears the name, but the deeds belong to Emshyr.

his alludes to the common saying, the cold of the Tooba, which in Egypt is applied to any




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age 18onsiderable degree of cold. Tooba is the Coptic month comprehending the greater part of January: but the coldest m

Egypt, although it has not the character of being so, is Emshyr, the month next after Tooba.

4.rom the mothers efforts in labour, we expected the birth of a male child.

Parturiunt montes, nascitur ridiculus mus. Sons are much more desired than daughters throughout the East.he labour of a woman in childbed.

5.*Work (were it only) for a single grain, and reckon up the profits of him who does nothing.

often means a trifle. Thus it is said, not even the smallest trifle.

6.thou find her, cut her veil in two. The object is now to find the chance of meeting her he replied

is not sufficient to form projects, circumstances must favour us in executing them. a womans veil, generally

ack silk or cotton. is here




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ut for . In the Egyptian dialect means now, for once, above all. in my turn.

literally, the gathering together what is separated; or as here, to cause or find a meeting. The

xpression often signifies nothing more than if, if!

7.best know the sun of my own country.very one knows best his own affairs, and those interested in them.

8.he Zalabye is (a dish) forbidden to the dogs.

he higher classes only can enjoy certain pleasures. are round cakes made of flour, butter, and sugar; not mu

fashion of late at Cairo.

9.*he needy is the brother of the cuckold.

he needy husband connives at the dishonourable earnings of his unfaithful wife. The term (cuckold) is no

nger used at Cairo. Cuckolds and procurers are generally comprised under the same appellation , which i

e common expression of insult among the Egyptians, and heard on every occasion. Equivalent to are the

ords and .




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0.he beetle is a beauty in the eyes of its mother.

n the infatuation of parents. The beetle is cited by the present Egyptians as remarkable for its uglines

hey use in the sense of handsome.

1.Work, though thy gain be merely the oil, rather than sit (idle) at home.

his alludes to the oil with which lamps are lighted, and which costs each family at least two paras every night. Toxpress that a man is reduced to abject poverty, the Egyptians say, he has not as much as would pay for the oil.

2.ain upon dirt rather than loss upon musk.

ndeavour to gain in low pursuits rather than lose in brilliant concerns. is used in Egypt to signify loss; bu

e term is more frequently employed.




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3.the house be relieved from (the presence of) Sayd, no other will come from afar.

his relates in general to importunate and intruding visitors. Sayd was one of those parasites (called ) who inrmer times were established as a regular corporation at Cairo, and became a plague to all who gave entertainments.

hey have their chief or sheikh, and obtruded their company at every private feast, unless they were induced by a predepart from the house.

4.he wise with a wink, the fool with a kick (are taught to understand).

5.ollow the owl, she will lead thee to a ruined place.

n the consequences of bad company. in constant use among the Egyptians, signifying to carry, to lead,

ansport.

6.he fly knows the face of the milk-seller.his proverb chiefly refers to the dancing girls,




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1.*he public woman who is liberal (of her favours), does not wish for a procuress.

thorough scoundrel wants no inducement to bad actions. a procuress. commonly used in Egypt fon unchaste female or prostitute.

2.*he people concerned in the nuptials long for the broth.hose nearest to wealth are often prevented from enjoying it; the great enjoy the least. In this proverb it is supposed the guests devour all the meat of the nuptial feast, leaving the members of the family to long even for the broth.

3.Mingle thy sorrow with Zebybe.

rown your griefs in pleasures. is a preparation from the flower of hemp, opium, and honey, excessivelytoxicating. It is used among the lower classes and peasants. In Hedjaz this flower of hemp is mixed with raisins (calebyb) and tobacco, and is smoked in the Persian pipe; from which mixture the name of Zebybe has probably beenerived.




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4.The misfortune) falls either upon the camel, or upon the camel-driver, or upon the owner of theamel.his expresses that if a person be once unlucky, he is unfortunate in every thing, whether with respect to his family orusiness.

5.*ight a candle; search for a whole week; thou wilt find something worth a shell.

n fruitless or childish exertions. are small white shells brought from the Red Sea, which serve as playthings

hildren, and as counters in the game of mangal. used in Egypt for

6.*

he little bird picks its breast, while the sportsman sets his net.

he word , properly a sparrow, is often used to express any small bird. in the original sense meanck the vermin off the head or body of a child. The birds in performing that operation upon themselves always appea

e much pleased. In Egypt it is said of a person to express that be is in a thoughtless state of secur

r happy leisure. ( stands for he does; and is an




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uxiliary verb in constant use.) properly signifying to fry a piece of meat in the pan; here means, to turnnds of the net-strings in the sportsmans hand, as meat is turned with a spoon in the frying-pan.

7.*o live single rather than have ill-natured companions.

8.*hey stood in need of the Jew (to assist thm)this day, said he, is my feast-day.ddressed to persons unwilling to serve or oblige.

9.*thousand lovers rather than one Mostahel.

Many lovers or gallants cause less shame to a woman than oneMostahel. According to the Moslim law a person whonce divorced his wife cannot re-marry her, until she has been married to some other man who becomes her legitimatusband, cohabits with her for one night, and divorces her the next morning; after which the first husband may again

ossess her as his wife. Such cases are of frequent occurrenceas men in the haste of anger often divorce their wivese simple expression




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which cannot be retracted. In order to regain his wife a man hires (at no inconsiderable rate) someeasant, whom he chooses from the ugliest that can be found in the streets; but who must engage effectually toonsummate the nuptials. A temporary husband of this kind is calledMostahel,and is generally most disgusting to thife.

0.What the ant collects in the course of a whole year, the monk eats up in one night.

for

1.What does heaven care for the cries of the dogs?

n the indifference of government to the complaints of the lower classes. to care forbe attentive to: thu

said, take care.

2.*he smallest stock of provisions supports (the traveller back) to his home.

is often employed, as here, for ones home or country.




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3.secret confided to him may be regarded as if it were (published) in the house of the police office

is the chief officer of police, in whose house every private transaction becomes known.

4.e gave him the sheeps ear (for his share).

his relates to unjust or unequal divisions. is used in Egypt for

5.e gave him the vinegar to drink upon the wings of flies.e devised the most artful and ignominious methods of slowly tormenting him.

6.e let him see the stars in day-time.his proverb is exclusively applied to those who from stinginess keep their own people in such a state of hunger thatey become faint, and every object seems black to their eyes.




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7.When the monkey reigns, dance before him.

8.he captain (of the ship) means one way, the sailor another.

f a person who gives such an answer as does not relate to the question asked. is not used here in its usu

nse, of account, but stands for or meaning. Thus it is said I meant o there.

9.the erdeb (of corn) does not belong to thee, be not present when it is measured out;(else) thy be

will be dusted, and thou, wilt be wearied with the removing of it.

o not trouble thyself about the business of others, else thou wilt repent it. the Egyptian corn-measure, equabout fifteen bushels.

0.he clever and active valet wants no one to set him right.

he lazy only require spurs. in Egypt




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age 29gnifies the valet de chambre, who keeps his masters clothes and keys, is the chief among his servants, and generally

s confidant. The Egyptians use the word to express a man who is lazy himself and only occupied in the

fairs of others. The Moggrebyns give this name to spurs. In Egypt denotes one who is both active and clehis business.

1.clever spinster spins with an asss foot (as her distaff).f those who do much with small means.

2.he walls have ears.

for

3.e who introduces himself between the onion and the peel, does not go forth without its strong sm

n the consequences of intimacy with bad people. is used in Egypt for stink or bad smell.




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4.Even) the entrails in the belly quarrel together.n family broils.

5.eed the mouth, the eye will be bashful.ive presents to great people and they will be ashamed not to look upon you with kindness. This saying is very commCairo.

6.e sells his friend more easily than the brethren of Joseph sold him.

signifies at Cairo one who abandons his old friends for new, on the slightest prospect of gain. The history oseph is very finely told in the Korn.

7.He is) more greedy than Ashab.

8.greater liar than Moseylama.

hese two sayings relate to Ashab and Moseylama, ancient Arabs (the latter a false prophet)




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age 31markable for the vices here imputed to them. These personages are noticed in the following fine verses:

Thou gavest me thy pledge so that I believed it to be truen my greedy hopes I went (to thy abode) and turned backf in society thou and I should meet,eople, will say, here is Moseylamaand that is Ashab.

9.

ollow the liar to the gate of his house.

o ascertain whether he has spoken truth. used in Egypt for

00.*What does the wolf care if the sheep-fold be destroyed?

the same as a wolf.

01.ay or expensive fashions (adopted but) concealed consist in the Tikke and the Tkye.aid of hypocrites or timid persons who declaim




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age 32gainst gay fashions, but secretly indulge in them.El Tikkeis a sash of silk or muslin, often embroidered, with whichowsers of men and women are closely tied about the loins, while it remains hidden under the garments. El Tkyegnifies a white cambric bonnet or cap, frequently embroidered, that is worn close to the head under the red bonnet o

arbosh. In the Egyptian dialect means high gaiety, fashion, liberality, heartiness, jollity. The

ords and are very common; being applied also to low people, who in their station and among twn acquaintances affect to be smart and dashing. Those who do not wish or who fear to make themselves tooonspicuous by an open display of gay fashions, console themselves by having these two hidden articles of costlyaterials and expensive workmanship. Both the Tikkeand the Tkyeare among the first tokens of affection sent by ady to her lover. The Tikkeaffords subject for many jokes in gay conversation.

02.What can I think of thy good qualities, O onion! as every bite draws tears?

aid of men who in this respect are like the onion. Here is to be understood,

nd stands for




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03.hey saw a drunkard reading (the Koran). Sing, they said, and both thy occupations will resembleach other.

the verb stand by itself, it is often to be understood as

04.thou shouldest prove a virtuous woman, hang a jar on my ear.

shall submit to pain and ridicule if the woman continue virtuous. virtuous, as becomes a free-born woman.

05.Of) the slave (take) either the first or the last.eware of the pains that must be taken with a half-bred man. Purchase the slave either when he is quite young and ra that he may be educated as you please; or when he is full grown and all his good or bad qualities can be discovered

06.We bought him (the jackass) to turn the plaster (of Paris) mill; but he proved fit only for the corn m

n disappointed expectations. gypsum, or




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age 34aster of Paris. It requires much greater strength to turn the heavy gypsum mill, than a common corn mill. Almost evspectable house at Cairo has its own mill which is worked by a jackass.

07.name without a body (or reality).

his is said of persons who bear honourable names. Such as

&c., but whose characters little answer to theirames.

08.ending is ruinous (to lenders and borrowers).here is a similar proverb:

ending nurses enmity.

in the Egyptian dialect, to advance or lend money.

09.Work thou, O unfortunate person, for this idle Sybarite.

one who sits at ease reclining upon his cushions; and, in general, the idle who enjoy every luxury.




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10.he mother of the coward does not grieve (for him).he has no cause to grieve for one who never exposes himself to danger.

11.

the harlot repent, she becomes a procuress.milar to this proverb is the following:

12.hou art but the washerman (of the dead), yet thou wilt insure (him) Paradise.n the airs of patronage or protection assumed by those who possess not any influence or authority whatever.

13.the rose come, we eat and drink near it; if It depart, we do not regret it.We court the friendship of those whom we afterwards leave with indifference. This proverb alludes to the Eastern

ustom of having feasts and collations in gardens during the season of roses. is hero for




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14.he father is a lover (of some one not in his own house)the mother is jealousthe daughter atome is puzzled how to act.

15.od grant us not any neighbour with-two eyes.is better that our neighbours should be half-blind.

16.e who steals the asses, what does he care about selling each of them even for one derhem?

17.*n honourable man is honourable, even though mishaps should befall him.

signifies here virtuous, or honourable, as above (in No. 104). Of this proverb the pronunciation at Cairo is llows:l horr horr

Wa low messoo eddorr,e owin lowhaving the sound of owin the English word owl.




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18.*he inconsiderate is the first to lose (or nearest to loss).ome robbers attacked a house, and the owner was forced to give them a hundred pieces of coin; but these being all boney, the robbers were detected in the bzr, where they went to make purchases. One of them on his way to theaffold, passed by the house of the person robbed, and reproached him for his cunning; but the man replied,

thou art the inconsiderate person: which words gave origin to this proverb. There is a common

hrase at Cairo, I have foolishly or inconsiderately lost such a thing. The

eople of Upper Egypt use the word in the same sensethus, this is probably a

orruption of the verb or .

19.*he tongue is the necks enemy.ad language is retorted upon the neck of him who uses it, with a blow.

20.o have patience with a friend rather than lose him for ever.the dialect of Cairo many terms are used in




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e sense of friend. denotes the first class of friendsthen follows or and th

uperlative is .

21.o haul the rope is incumbent upon the boatmen.

very one has, and should know, his own business. Here is to be understood

he word is the rope by which boats are dragged along the shore of the Nile against the stream. e boatmen who pull the rope, or peasants hired for that purpose.

22.he corn passes from hand to hand, but comes at last to the mill.

owever he may turn or shift, he will at last be caught or fall into the hands of his enemy.

23.hrow him into the river and he will rise with a fish in his mouth.

aid of a lucky or highly fortunate person. is here put for The term expresses

roughout all Egypt the Nile or The




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often added to nouns (as in ) not only marks the feminine gender, but shows precisely that the noun is singu

thus a single cow, a single bird; but in common conversation the is frequently added without anyarticular meaning.

24.*dvance or lend him (money), and play or joke with him; thou wilt lose by him.cularity with a debtor often causes the loss of the money due.

25.mprove or correct thy intentions (preserve a clear conscience) and sleep (without fear) in the dese

26.e bought for one derhem some dates; and has now his palm-trees in the villageaid of boastersthis man wishes others to believe that the dates which he purchased were the produce of his own tr

Egypt it is generally considered by the peasants as an honour to possess date trees, because they mostly belong to

ncient< previous page page_39 next page



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age 40milies and cannot easily be purchased. Of similar meaning is the proverb:

et him who owns one kert of the mare, mount her.ne horses and valuable mares are shared among different proprietors, each of whom possesses a certain number of t

wenty-four kertsinto which the animal is supposed to be divided.

27.*ebts cause both cheeks to become black.

ebts are a constant shame. or is the distinguishing colour of wicked persons on thMoslim) Day of Judgment. In common discourse it means shame. The father says to his son, or the friend to his

ompanion, do not blacken my facedo not let thy behaviour prove a cause of shame toe.

28.e falls more frequently (or more easily) than flies fall into honey.

is here used as the comparative of an irregular form often employed by the Egyptians. It is equivalent

eaning to




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29.he one-eyed person is a beauty in the country of the blind.

30.

Whither can the sun retire from the bleachers?his alludes to persons who cannot elude the pursuit of their importunate clients. The bleachers are constantly watch

r the sun, that they may spread out their cloth or yarn. in the dialect of Egypt, is a bleacher.

31.*he foreign hand destroys the well-conditioned houses.

signifies both populous and in a good state of repair or cultivation.

32.hey met a monkey making water in a mosque, Dost thou not fear said they, that the Lord mayansform or metamorphose thee? (Indeed) replied he, (I should fear that punishment) if he we

o change me into a Gazelle.his refers to conceited persons. Gazelles and




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onkies, according to Eastern nations, represent the extremes of beauty and ugliness. May etamorphose thee! is a common expression of insult; to which is frequently added, may he change thee into a dog

hog! Here is to be understood

.

33.ustom is a fifth nature.

rabian physiologists divide the human character into four natural classes; the choleric , the bilious

, the melancholy , and the phlegmatic .

34.*he bad neighbour sees only what enters (the house), not what goes out (from it).e keeps an account of what his neighbour gains, but not of what he expends in charity; i.e.,he is blind to your goodualities and only notices your defects.




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35.fter he had mounted, he put his legs in motion (to excite the animal that he rode).

When a man is once firmly established in power, he begins to oppress and tyrannize.

36.*fter he had attained to Islm, he affected to be a Sherf.uccess renders a man bold.

37.*miserable Bedouin found a date (that had been) thrown away. Whither shall I go said he, (to e

n safety?)

rifles become treasures to the poor. is not used by the Egyptians in its literal meaning ulcerated, but

enerally to express miserable, pitiable. They also use for dry date.




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38.fter they had ravished her, she called out to the watchmen.

n the hypocrisy of prudes. in the plural watchmen stationed in different quarters of the town.

39.he village saint is a clever impostor.

signifies a living saint or half-mad man. Egypt abounds with fellows of this description, who are well known

e vile impostors. in the usual acceptation of the word, means the open country and villages between Cairo

nd the Mediterranean Sea. in the Egyptian dialect, a clever active thief, an impostor.

40.*

he sold the lamp and bought a curtain (to hide her doings in the bed chamber). That said one, candal under a fine appearance.

scandal. Thus they make a public scandal of me. The word is likewise used in th

me sense. finely explained, giving a good external appearance.




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41.fter he had eaten and was reclining on the sofa, he said, thy bread has a smell of mastick.

When he had fully enjoyed it he began to disparage it. he reclined, as people after dinner, upon sofa-cushion

hen coffee is presented to them. in the Egyptian dialect signifies bread.

42.ur town is but small, we all know each other.his is said when an acquaintance meditates some fraud or deception.

43.nstead of walking upon kabkbs, take the rags off thy heels.

rovide for the necessaries of life before you enjoy the luxuries. in the Egyptian dialect for Kabkbe stilts or wooden slippers, four or five inches high, upon which the women walk in the baths, and the ladies of gen

nk in their houses. These latter have their kabkbs ornamented with various sorts of silver tassels, and inlaid with

other of pearl. is used by the Egyptians for a rag; also for a vile slut.




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44.he has an offensive breath, yet presses forward to get a kiss.n the ill-founded pretensions of people.

45.*That is) a bad exchange, (like giving) a pawn for a bishop.saying derived from the game of chess.

46.etween Hn and Bn our beards were lost.his proverb owes its origin to a story resembling one which La Fontaine has related. Hn and Bn were the wivesn elderly manone plucked out his grey hairs, the other his black, and so left him without any. In Egypt there are otrms, like Hn and Bn, used merely because they sound almost alike: thus he went to Khirt Birt

, which means that he travelled upon a foolish errand; or he went toHersh Mersh

, implying that he did not succeed in his business, or else that he was placed in a state ofortification or disgrace, which might be expressed by the English saying, he was sent to Coventry. (Other wordsithout any literal signification used




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age 47this manner, will occur hereafter.) It may here be remarked that many facetious stories long current in Europe, are

rabian origin.

47.Like) the lamentation of Adam on his departure or separation from Paradise.his is said of unavailing grief, chiefly of lamentation for the deceased.

48.he went to sleep hungry, (although) her husband is a baker.

hose nearest to plenty sometimes experience want. in Egypt used for

49.n a town where thou knowest nobody, do whatever thou likest.

Most people are ashamed only of those by whom they are known. Here is to be understood

50.house from which thou eatest, do not pray for its destruction.




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51.well from which thou drinkest, throw not a stone into it.

52.oast them only, do not burn them.

oo violent measures cause us to lose the expected profits. signifies the roasting of coffee-beans in sma

on pans, according to the Eastern custom; these pans are called The word is of the Syrian orgyptian dialect and much used; it means only, at all events, nothing more, this will do, &c.; at other times ierely a superfluous particle, or an expletive without meaning, annexed to some phrase.

53.elling and buying, and nothing upon the board.

quivalent to the saying, great cry and little wool. or is a round board on which the pedlars who wabout the streets expose their goods for sale.

54.Like) a hawk over a scare-crow (i.e., flying about it).o designate a person of meddling disposition,




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ho never remains a moment quiet. is a particular sort of scare-crow, made of thin pieces of wood, and used ie gardens about Cairo.

55.e left off sinning, but never asked forgiveness.aid in allusion to those who think it sufficient if they discontinue their bad actions, but never make atonement or solardon for those they have already committed.

56.harlot repented for one night. Is there no police officer, she exclaimed, to take up or lay hold o

arlots?hose who have been sinners themselves are often the least indulgent towards others; and on the slightest repentance

ey claim the privilege of rigid virtue. (plural ) the term used at Cairo to express a harlot or pub

oman. is an exclamation. the chief police officer at Cairo. He is also entitled exclusively El Aga.




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57.ome, let us circumcise the kalyt in this crowd.

proverb ironically expressing that this is not the proper time or place for a business in question. is a personuffering from certain tumours which sometimes affect even children at Cairo; and which would render the operation

rcumcision extremely tedious and troublesome. Kalyt among the vulgar is a nickname frequently applied.

58.ome, (my dear,) without any (more) quarrelling, sit down upon this pelisse.

aid in ridicule of the means employed by a husband to coax his wife into good humour. for In the

gyptian dialect signifies complaint, quarrel. To spread a pelisse that another may sit upon it is a mark oeat -respect and attention.

59.he falcon dies and his eye is (still) upon the seizure (of his prey).

he tyrant continues a tyrant to his last breath. an ash-grey falcon of the smaller species,




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ommon throughout Egypt and Syria. the action of seizing or carrying off prey. The verb isonstantly employed to express the carrying off plunder by soldiers from peasants and shopkeepers.

60.hou kindlest the flame, and criest fire.

61.may be a fire; on the morrow it will be ashes.iolent passions easily subside.

62.hou takest from the sore-footed his sandal.

hou ruinest the man completely. means not only bare-footed, but one who has the sole of his foot sore fralking.

63.hou kissest thy lover, and tearest out his teeth.

n the greediness of bad women. properly means a rival; but in Egypt is generally used for a lover:gnifies also at Cairo a partner at the chess or backgammon board.




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66.e lays round eggs and asks for young turkeys (to proceed from them).n unreasonable expectations. The turkey egg is oval, while the pigeon egg (here meant) is nearly round.

67.Wind and sea combatthis time said the ships, we shall have the worst of it.

When two rivals contend for the government, the subjects are most to be pitied. in the Egyptian dialect means

nce, this time. for once it has fallen upon us; i.e., the misfortune. There is also a say

for once or this time it has come upon us, (i.e.,the goodhap,) or we shall be gainers.

used in Egypt for

68.he wind blows as the sailors do not wish.

n untoward circumstances in general. to run; it implies also any other kind of rapid motion.




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69.nder this (fine) apparel a he-goat (is hidden).

he-goat is, among Arabs, the emblem of a stupid clown. be silent, thou goa phrase often heard in the bzrs.

70.he crown of a good disposition is humility.

in the Egyptian dialect does not merely signify what belongs to the what is manly,but in general good

sposition, kindness, zeal. It is said of a person who likes to be serviceable to others,

honestly zealous in his business. a cold egotist.

71.borrowed cloak does not keep one warm.

We best enjoy what is our own property.




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72.he ox that ploughs is not to be muzzled.his was a precept of the Jewish law. See Deuteronomy xxv, 4. We must necessarily trust to those whom we employ

ny business. comes from a muzzle made of ropes, closely tied to the mouths of oxen, camels, andher cattle, to prevent their grazing in the fields of strangers in passing along the road; for there are not in Egypt anyclosures.

73.hree (persons) if they unite against a town will ruin it.he smallest number of evil-disposed persons, if well united, can work considerable mischief.

74.is gown is full of holes; he thrusts out his hand at whatever place he likes.

overty is sometimes an advantage, as it insures freedom of action. for

75.*serpent upon a dung-cake was swimming in a dirty




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age 56ond. Some one said, (indeed,) nothing suits this stinking pond better than this ship of dirt and thlthy spectator (i.e., the serpent).

for or The dried cakes of cattle-dung are called used as fuel in the East. A

ommon term for serpent in Egypt is a great serpent is called and this name is likewise given te eel.

76.*he oppression of Turks, rather than the justice of Arabs.y the term Arabs are here meant the Bedouins, who, in the Mammelouk times, most grievously oppressed the openountry of Egypt. The Bedouins themselves often call their nation exclusively Arab, a term they use more frequentan Bedou; and all other Arabians, who are not of Arab tribes, they distinguish by the appellation of Hadhary orellah, which with them are terms of reproach or contempt.




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77.*he tyranny of the cat, rather (or is better) than the justice of the mouse.he mouse bears a much worse character in the East than in the West; wily, insidious, rapacious, are the gentlestpithets applied to her. Mice are certainly a great nuisance in Egypt, where the open country (as well as every town)bounds with them to such a degree, that I have known instances of families being actually driven from their homes b

e numbers and rapaciousness of the mice and rats, that spared neither victuals nor furniture. signifies unjuolent, oppressive behaviour.

78.came to utter an imprecation against him, and found the wall inclining over him.

is unnecessary to revile a person who is already crushed by universal opprobrium. inclining ovem, ready to fall upon him.

79.

he fool has his answer on the edge of his tongue.

he fool answers without reflection, whatever comes first into his mind. here means a fool.




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age 58ot merely vile or bad. The following verse is quoted on the same subject:

The tongue of the wise is in his heart,The heart of the fool is in his mouth.

80.ilence is the (best) answer to the stupid.

means likewise to leave him alone. leave him alone is a common expressgnifying neither speak to him nor meddle with him.

81.e came to the impious to blaspheme.e did what was superfluous, because all his companions did the same. With a similar meaning the Arabs say

a (second) receipt for what has already been settled, or equally superfluous actions.

82.he lamb came to teach its father how to feed.

83.hey came to shoe the horses of the Psh; the beetle then stretched out its leg (to be shod).n ridiculous pretensions.




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84.he camel crouches down on the place of another camel.his is said when one great dignitary dies and another immediately takes his place. In travelling, the places where theamels repose on the evening station are distinguished from the surrounding country, and caravans usually halt at theme spots.

85.*well is not to be filled with dew.

his is said when trifling presents are offered to a powerful person who is known to be greedy.

86.came to the scabby-headed (person) to be amused in his company; he uncovered his head andightened me.riendship ceases when a persons real character is known.

87.ne came to count the waves of the sea; he erred (in the reckoning). There are (at all events) moroming than going he said.n paltry expedients to conceal ignorance or




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egligence. The expression is likewise often used to console a person f

me disappointment, and then it means one opportunity is lost, but another will present itself. in the

gyptian dialect for

88.hey came to milk the goat; he brke wnd.

he stupid clown disappoints those who require his services. used in Egypt for

89.he efforts of the poor are his tears.he poor can only weep for the misfortunes of others, but are not able to alleviate them; this is a frequent apology forithholding assistance.

90.hy neighbour is thy teacher.

We learn from our companions.

91.Like) the hunger of the louse upon the head of the scabby.

said when a person in affluence pleads poverty.



8/12/2019 Arabic proverbs, or the manners and cutoms of the modern egyptian illustrated from their proverbial sayings.pd

Arabic proverbs, or the manners and cutoms of the modern egyptian illustrated from their proverbial...

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