Haitian proverbs

From Wikiquote

• "Bonjou se paspò ou."
  • "Hello" is your passport.

• "De mèg pa fri."
  • Two skinny people don't fry. (Two poor people shouldn't marry, for even together they won't have enough to get by)

• "Dèyè mòn gen mòn."
  • Beyond mountains, there are more mountains.

• "Fanm se kajou: plis li vye, plis li bon."
  • A woman is like mahogany: the older she is, the better she is.

• "Grangou se mizè, vant plen se traka."
  • Hunger is misery; a full stomach is trouble.

• "Madichon ou bay bèlmè ou se manman ou li rive."
  • When you curse your stepmother, your mother will be the victim.

• "Malè avèti pa touye kokobe."
  • A foreseen disaster does not kill the handicapped.

• "Moun mouri pa konnen valè dra blan."
  • The dead do not know the value of white sheets. (Funerals are for the living.)

• "Men anpil, chay pa lou."
  • Many hands make a workload lighter.

• "Pise krapo ogmante larivyè."
  • The frog's pee adds to the river. (Every little counts.)

• "Piti piti zwazo fè nich."
  • Little by little the bird makes his nest.

• "Pito ou mize ou nan wout, ou pote bon nouvèl."
  • Better to take your time on the way, if you bring good news.

• "Sak vid pa kanpe."
  • An empty sack doesn't stand up. (A hungry person cannot do anything.)

• "Ti koulèv k ap grandi se anba wòch ke li rete."
  • Little snakes need to grow in hiding.

• "Yo pa achte chat nan sak."
  • You don't buy a cat in a bag. (Make sure you know what you are buying.)

• "Yo pa voye wòch sou mango vèt."
  • You don't throw rocks at a green mango. (You wait until a mango is ripe before you try to knock it down from the tree.)