As They Say In Zanzibar. David Crystal
mouth in front of an oven DENMARK
9 It is better to be once in the church sleigh than always in the back runners FINLAND
10 If the swing goes forward it will go backward too SRI LANKA
11 When two ride on one horse one must sit behind ENGLAND
12 Someone who stands behind a wall can see nothing else JAPAN
13 Leave a good name behind in case you return KENYA
14 You must go behind the door to mend old breeches ENGLAND
15 On going into a church leave the world behind the door SPAIN
16 The hindermost ox also reaches the kraal SOUTH AFRICA
110 SIDES
1 The reverse side has its reverse side JAPAN
2 The sun shines on both sides of the hedge ENGLAND
3 You can only go halfway into the darkest forest; then you are coming out the other side CHINA
4 The water is the same on both sides of the boat FINLAND
5 There is no bridge without a place the other side of it WALES
6 One never falls but on the side towards which one leans FRANCE
7 The other side of the road always looks cleanest ENGLAND
8 A canoe is paddled on both sides NIGERIA
9 The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence ENGLAND
10 It is folly to put flour into a bag facing the wind GERMANY
11 Practice with the left hand while the right hand is still there LIBERIA
12 Someone without a friend is like the right hand without the left BELGIUM
13 Don’t buy a left-hand monkey-wrench CANADA
111 BUILDING
1 A chattering bird builds no nest CAMEROON
2 One family builds the wall; two families enjoy it CHINA
3 Communities begin by building their kitchen FRANCE
4 To build, one must have two purses BELGIUM
5 A house is not built on earth, but on a woman SERBIA
6 Those who cannot build the dyke should hand over the land NETHERLANDS
7 Those who think they are building a mound may only in reality be digging a pit CHINA
8 When the house is built the carpenter is forgotten INDIA
9 A clever bird builds its nest with other birds’ feathers ZIMBABWE
10 If you are building a house and a nail breaks, do you stop building or do you change the nail? RWANDA AND BURUNDI
11 Rome was not built in a day ENGLAND
12 You may know a carpenter by his chips ENGLAND
112 STRAIGHT – BENT – CROOKED
1 Between two points one cannot draw more than one straight line DENMARK
2 Dull scissors can’t cut straight USA
3 There is a time to squint, and a time to look straight SCOTLAND
4 Carrying-poles which bend easily do not break CHINA
5 Those who know how to bend the fish-hook know how to straighten it TANZANIA
6 Those who cannot cut the bread evenly cannot get on well with people CZECH REPUBLIC
7 A crooked log makes a good fire FRANCE
8 How can there be a forest without a crooked tree? BULGARIA
9 Think not because the cane is bent the sugar is crooked too MALAYSIA
10 In crooked wood one recognizes the artist TOGO
11 Crooked furrows grow straight grain CANADA
12 One camel does not make fun of another camel’s hump GUINEA
113 ROUNDNESS
1 When you eat a round cake, do you begin at the centre? NIGERIA
2 At a round table every seat is first GERMANY
3 All that is round is not a cake LIBYA
4 You can’t eat a square meal off a round table USA
5 Grief and joy are a revolving wheel INDIA
6 If my aunt had wheels, she might be an omnibus NETHERLANDS
7 Any spoke will lead the ant to the hub USA
8 The energy of the dung-beetle is put into rolling its ball of dung CHINA
114 PROMINENCES
1 The protruding nail will be pounded down JAPAN
2 Little crows have the largest beaks BELGIUM
3 Sparrows clean their beaks against the branch on which they sit ESTONIA
4 Every little bird has a long beak NAMIBIA
5 Those who are not in the habit of riding forget the spurs IRELAND
6 A low stump upsets the sledge FINLAND
115 HOLES
1 If it is your own lantern, do not poke holes in the paper CHINA
2 If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging USA
3 Dig a well before you are thirsty CHINA
4 The nail suffers as much as the hole NETHERLANDS
5 God preserve us from pitch-forks, for they make three holes SWITZERLAND
6 When someone’s coat is threadbare, it is easy to pick a hole in it ENGLAND
7 Those who think they are building a mound may only in reality be digging a pit CHINA
8 If you engrave it too much it will become a hole INDIA
9 Silent worms bore holes in the wall JAPAN
10 Different holes have different fish MALAYSIA
11 Only those who have travelled the road know where the holes are deep CHINA
12 The hollow of the ear is never full SENEGAL
13 The one who seeks revenge should remember to dig two graves CHINA
14 Even a mole may instruct a philosopher on the art of digging CHINA
116 SHARP THINGS
1 Where the needle goes the thread must follow POLAND
2 No needle is sharp at both ends CHINA
3 A hot needle burns the thread CÔTE D’IVOIRE
4 One thread for the needle, one love for the heart SUDAN
5 A needle cannot hold two threads or a mind two thoughts ETHIOPIA
6 Better be stung by a nettle than pricked by a rose ENGLAND
7 The more you squeeze a nettle the less it stings GERMANY
8 That which is to become a good nettle must sting early SWEDEN
9 Never feed a dog with corn, nor attempt to pick your teeth with a pair of scissors CHINA
10 Dull scissors can’t cut straight USA
11 Even in the sheath the knife must be sharp FINLAND
12 Have a mouth as sharp as a dagger, but a heart as soft as tofu CHINA
13 It is easy to hurt yourself on a stone that has sharp corners KOREA
14 It takes a long time to sharpen a hammer made of wood NETHERLANDS
15 It is very difficult to beat a drum with a sickle NIGERIA
16 Beware