170 Intriguing and Thought Provoking African Proverbs & Quotes

It's true that most places in the world have their own quotes and wise sayings. However, especially in Africa proverbs are an integral part of people's culture. Passed on from generation to generation for centuries, African proverbs are still in wide use today and are very much part of everyday speech, since African people are really proud of their wisdom.

Many years ago, African proverbs were used to convey messages during important conversations. People then thought that only an intelligent mind could get these sayings. That's how African proverbs became so connected with wisdom.

African proverbs' have always a wise meaning, but the person who tells a proverb should never explain its meaning!

Take a look at 170 wise African proverbs that will change the way you think. It'll be interesting to see which country of Africa they come from.

African proverbs:

1. Only a fool tests the depth of a river with both feet.
Meaning: You don't jump straight into a situation without thinking about it first.
2. Knowledge is like a garden: If it is not cultivated, it cannot be harvested.
Meaning: If you don't make efforts to acquire knowledge then you would not expect to have it and if you do not put the knowledge you have to use, you cannot expect to gain anything from it.
3. Sugarcane is sweetest at its joint.
Meaning: Good and sweet things of live may appear difficult to achieve but in the end, it is worth it.
4. If you offend, ask for a pardon; if offended forgive.
Meaning: This is as simple as it sounds: If you upset someone, apologize to him or her. If someone upsets you, forgive him or her because what goes around, comes around.
5. Don't set sail using someone else's star.
Meaning: Avoid copying someone else. Just because someone has been successful in what he/she does should not be what will make you to do the same thing and expect to be successful.
6. The best way to eat an elephant in your path is cut him up into little pieces.
Meaning: The best approach to solving a problem is to take it bit by bit; one at a time.
7. A restless feet may walk into a snake pit.
Meaning: If someone is busy doing nothing or is involved in what he does noe know about, it is easy for him to get into trouble.
8. A chick that will grow into a cock can be spotted the very day it hatches.
Meaning: You can easily foresee the future of something through the character and tell-tale signs it exhibits today.
9. After a foolish deed comes remorse.
Meaning: Feeling sorry always follows a foolish act.
10. A man who pays respect to the great paves the way for his own greatness.
Meaning: What goes around, comes around so whatever you sow, you shall reap
11. He who does not know one thing knows another.
Meaning: No one knows everything, but everyone knows something.
12. A roaring lion kills no game.
Meaning: You cannot achieve or gain anything by mere sitting around and just talking about it.
13. Do not call the forest that shelters you a jungle.
Meaning: Do not insult someone who is capable of taking your responsibility or taking care of you
14. When a king has good counselors, his reign is peaceful. (Ashanti proverb)
Meaning: What defines a man is the circumstances and people around him and if they are good, he turns out good.
15. It takes a whole village to raise a child.
Meaning: The society is responsible for the moral characters it creates and everyone in a community should be responsible for helping to train a child irrespective of who the parents are; offering correction where they are needed.
16. If a child washes his hands he could eat with kings.
Meaning: If you prepare and allow yourself to be well trained when you have the opportunity, you will achieve a lot and be favored in due course.
17. Rain does not fall on one roof alone.
Meaning: Trouble comes to everyone at one time or another.
18. Life is like a shadow and a mist; it passes quickly by, and is no more.
Meaning: Life is short, and you only live it once.
19. Wherever a man goes to dwell, his character goes with him.
Meaning: What defines a man is his character which is inseparable from him and follows him wherever he goes.
20. Do not look where you fell, but where you slipped.
Meaning: Don't look at your mistakes; look at what caused you to make the mistakes otherwise you may repeat the mistake.
The beauty of African proverbs lies in their mystery. Earlier in this article, we mentioned that in most African traditions, it is “unacceptable” to tell an African proverb and still be the one to explain the meaning. In the spirit of African culture, we've left a few assignments on more interesting African proverbs below. Read through them and enjoy the richness and wisdom of African culture while trying to see how much of it you can interpret.

African proverbs and Quotes

21. A child's fingers are not scalded by a piece of hot yam which his mother puts into his palm.
22. An old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb.
23. By the time the fool has learned the game, the players have dispersed. (Ashanti proverb)
24. Even though the old man is strong and hearty, he will not live forever.
25. A bird will always use another birds' feathers to feather its own nest.
26. A person is a person because of other persons.
27. Two small antelopes can beat a big one.
28. What is bad luck for one man is good luck for another.
29. Fire and gunpowder do not sleep together.
30. Hunger is felt by a slave and hunger is felt by a king.
31. The lizard that jumped from the high Iroko tree to the ground said he would praise himself if no one else did.
32. The mouth which eats does not talk.
33. He that digs up a grave for his enemy, may be digging it for himself.
34. Money is sharper than a sword.
35. No one tests the depth of a river with both feet.
36. A proud heart can survive a general failure because such a failure does not prick its pride.
37. As the dog said, ‘If I fall down for you and you fall down for me, it is playing.
38. If you are in hiding, don't light a fire.
39. It is Mr. Old-Man-Monkey who marries Mrs. Old-Woman-Monkey.
40. If you don't stand for something, you will fall for something.
41. It takes a whole village to raise a child
42. When the cock is drunk, he forgets about the hawk.
43. When the fool is told a proverb, its meaning has to be explained to him.
44. Only when you have crossed the river, can you say the crocodile has a lump on his snout.
45. Rain beats a leopard's skin, but it does not wash out the spots.
46. The sun will shine on those who stand before it shines on those who kneel under them.
47. Those whose palm-kernels were cracked for them by a benevolent spirit should not forget to be humble.
48. When a man is coming toward you, you need not say: “Come here.”
49. When a man is wealthy, he may wear an old cloth.
50. A man's grave is by the roadside.
51. When you follow in the path of your father, you learn to walk like him.
52. Wood already touched by fire is not hard to set alight.
53. It is no shame at all to work for money.
54. It is the calm and silent water that drowns a man.
55. A wise man who knows proverbs, reconciles difficulties. (Yoruba)
56. Do not look where you fell, but where you slipped.
57. The poor man and the rich man do not play together.
58. The ruin of a nation begins in the homes of its people.
59. A bad name is like a stigma.
60. When a woman is hungry, she says, “Roast something for the children that they might eat.”
61. When you are rich, you are hated; when you are poor, you are despised.
62. You can tell a ripe corn by its look.
63. You must judge a man by the work of his hands.
64. The moon moves slowly, but it crosses the town.
65. There is no medicine to cure hatred.
66. People should not talk while they are eating or pepper may go down the wrong way.
67. When a man says yes, his chi (personal god) says yes also.
68. It's a bad child who does not take advice.
69. One cannot both feast and become rich.
70. Looking at a king's mouth one would never think he sucked his mother's breast.
71. When the moon is shining the cripple becomes hungry for a walk.
72. It is the fool's sheep that break loose twice.
73. One falsehood spoils a thousand truths.
74. By crawling a child learns to stand. (African proverb)
75. The wise create proverbs for fools to learn, not to repeat.
76. Every woman is beautiful until she speaks.
77. One who causes others misfortune also teaches them wisdom
78. The surface of the water is beautiful, but it is no good to sleep on.
79. Ears that do not listen to advice, accompany the head when it is chopped off.
80. He who refuses to obey cannot command. (Kenyan proverb)
81. Milk and honey have different colors, but they share the same house peacefully. (African proverb)
82. The one who loves an unsightly person is the one who makes him beautiful.
83. If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. (African proverb)
84. A fight between grasshoppers is a joy to the crow.
85. You do not teach the paths of the forest to an old gorilla.
86. Dogs do not actually prefer bones to meat; it is just that no one ever gives them meat.
87. Dine with a stranger but save your love for your family.
88. An army of sheep led by a lion can defeat an army of lions led by a sheep. (Ghanaian proverb)
89. You are beautiful because of your possessions. (Baguirmi Proverb)
90. Instruction in youth is like engraving in stone.
91. He who fears the sun will not become chief.
92. The old woman looks after the child to grow its teeth and the young one in turn looks after the old woman when she loses her teeth.
93. He who is destined for power does not have to fight for it.
94. A large chair does not make a king. (Sudanese proverb)
95. You are beautiful, but learn to work, for you cannot eat your beauty.
96. When you follow in the path of your father, you learn to walk like him.
97. War has no eyes. (Swahili saying)
98. Having beauty doesn’t mean understanding the perseverance of marriage.
99. He who thinks he is leading and has no one following him is only taking a walk. (Malawian proverb)
100. Money is not the medicine against death.
101. When two elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled.
102. A small house will hold a hundred friends.
103. Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far. (West African proverb)
104. If the cockroach wants to rule over the chicken, then it must hire the fox as a body-guard. (Sierra Leone proverb)
105. If there is character, ugliness becomes beauty; if there is none, beauty becomes ugliness. (Nigerian Proverb)
106. There can be no peace without understanding.
107. A close friend can become a close enemy.
108. A single bracelet does not jingle. (Congolese proverb)
109. Money can’t talk, yet it can make lies look true.
110. When there is peace in the country, the chief does not carry a shield. (Ugandan proverb)
111. He who earns calamity, eats it with his family.
112. Peace is costly but it is worth the expense.(Kenyan proverb)
113. Peace does not make a good ruler. (Botswana proverb)
114. There can be no peace without understanding. (Senegalese proverb)
115. If you can’t resolve your problems in peace, you can’t solve them with war. (Somalian proverb)
116. A leader who does not take advice is not a leader. (Kenyan proverb)
117. Ugliness with a good character is better than beauty. (Nigerian Proverb)
118. Patience is the mother of a beautiful child. (Bantu Proverb)
119. Judge not your beauty by the number of people who look at you, but rather by the number of people who smile at you. (African Proverb)
120. The most beautiful fig may contain a worm. (Zulu Proverb)
121. It is only a stupid cow that rejoices at the prospect of being taken to a beautiful abattoir. (African Proverb)
122. There is always a winner even in a monkey’s beauty contest. (African Proverb)
123. An ugly child of your own is more to you than a beautiful one belonging to your neighbor. (Ganda Proverb)
124. Getting only a beautiful woman is like planting a vine on the roadside everyone feeds on it. (African Proverb)
125. If you find “Miss This Year” beautiful, then you’ll find “Miss Next Year” even more so. (Nigerian Proverb)
126. Unity is strength, division is weakness. (Swahili proverb)
127. Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable. (Bondei proverb)
128. It takes a village to raise a child. (African proverb)
129. Cross the river in a crowd and the crocodile won’t eat you. (African proverb)
130. Two ants do not fail to pull one grasshopper. (Tanzanian proverb)
131. A single stick may smoke, but it will not burn. (African proverb)
132. Wisdom is wealth. (Swahili)
133. Wisdom is like a baobab tree; no one individual can embrace it. (Akan proverb)
134. The fool speaks, the wise man listens. (Ethiopian proverb)
135. Wisdom does not come overnight. (Somali proverb)
136. The heart of the wise man lies quiet like limpid water. (Cameroon proverb)
137. Wisdom is like fire. People take it from others. (Hema-DRC-proverb)
138. Only a wise person can solve a difficult problem. (Akan proverb)
139. Knowledge without wisdom is like water in the sand. (Guinean proverb)
140. In the moment of crisis, the wise build bridges and the foolish build dams. (Nigerian proverb)
141. If you are filled with pride, then you will have no room for wisdom. (African proverb)
142. A wise person will always find a way. (Tanzanian proverb)
143. Nobody is born wise. (African proverb)
144. A man who uses force is afraid of reasoning. (Kenyan proverb)
145. Wisdom is not like money to be tied up and hidden. (Akan proverb)
146. Learning expands great souls. (Namibian proverb)
147. To get lost is to learn the way. (African proverb)
148. If you close your eyes to facts, you will learn through accidents. (African proverb)
149. Money, if you use it, comes to an end; learning, if you use it, increases. (Swahili proverb)
150. You always learn a lot more when you lose than when you win. (African proverb)

Don't forget to share this with your friends! You can also check this out: 25 Inspiring Quotes Of A Samurai

References: Silicon Africa, Answers Africa

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