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African proverbs about family

12 proverbs · 11 cultures

AcholiBambaraHausaLuhyaMaasaiNandeSangoShonaSwahiliTigrinyaTswana
When you reap problems, you share them with your family.
Trouble, when it comes, is shared with one's family. The proverb says that it is relatives who stand by a person in times of hardship.
A child cannot be punished because of his father's faults.
A child is not answerable for what its father did. The source calls it unfair to punish someone for a matter they had no part in, and treats this as a question of justice.
If you get a fortune, share it with your relatives; strangers easily forget the favor.
A stranger's gratitude fades once the favor is forgotten, but family remembers, and sharing deepens the bond. It's practical advice as much as feeling: who you're generous with matters.
The banana tree produces what kills it.
Once a banana plant has fruited, its stem is cut down for the ripe bunch. The proverb turns that image on parents, who suffer on account of their children's needs.
He who eats with his mother will not have to cry for the scrapings.
A child who eats beside its mother is given its share and does not have to beg for what is left in the pot. The proverb speaks of the security of being near those who care for you.
A mother holds the knife by its sharp edge.
A mother will take the cut herself before she lets harm reach her children. Gripping a knife by the blade means accepting the wound so someone else doesn't have to.
He who is not taught by his mother will be taught by the world.
A child who gets no guidance at home will still be taught, by the world, and usually less gently. Parents carry that responsibility, and something else fills the gap when they don't.
A house with children never lacks noise.
Where children live, there is noise. The proverb treats noise and disagreement in a household as a natural part of living together, and is used to call for peace among those who share a home.
The motherless child will suckle the grandmother.
A child who loses its mother is not left without care. The proverb says that the wider family, here the grandmother, takes up what the mother can no longer give.
Your mother is better than a slice of ugali given to you by someone else.
Someone else's hospitality can be generous, but it is not the same as what your own mother gives. What matters is who is giving, not the food. No one can replace her.
The children are the bright moon.
This saying is recorded without an explanation. It compares children to a bright moon, and may be read as saying that children are the light and joy of a home.
A child is guided while young, the way a hide is worked while fresh.
Habits taught early are the ones that last, the same way a hide can only be worked while it is still fresh and pliable. Wait too long on either, and the chance to shape it is gone.