Yoruba Proverbs

Àbíkẹ́ kiri róbó dé Kánò ó di Àbókí; orúkọ tó wù ọmọ ló lè jẹ́ lẹ́yìn odi. / Abiké hawked robo (melon crackers) to Kano and became Aboki; you can go by any name you like when away from home. [You may safely reinvent yourself when you migrate]

Ẹni gbá ṣẹ̀kẹ̀rẹ̀ ló jẹ́ ká mọ̀ pé ó lóhùn, tí a bá fi sílẹ̀ sí àyè ara rẹ̀ kò ní dún/ The one who beat the sekere (beaded gourd) was the one who made one know it had a voice; left untouched, it'd have stayed silent. [Potential needs opportunity & action to be revealed]

Ilé tó ńtòrò, ọmọ àlè ibẹ kò tí ì d'ágbá ni. / A home at peace simply means that the illegitimate child in it, is yet to grow up. [Calm on the surface doesn’t prove there’s no underlying explosive issue; our behaviour will ultimately reveal our true inner character.]

Ẹni máa jẹ ogún ológún, á pa ìtànkítàn. / Whoever intends to take over someone else's inheritance will tell questionable stories. [Think critically and have a healthy skepticism; question the stories of anyone who stands to gain by taking what belongs to another.]

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.]

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.]

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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]

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]

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.]

Ẹni bá ran ẹlẹ́mu lẹ́rù, kò má ṣe pàntèté, kí 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.]

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.]

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.]

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.]

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]

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]