In the course of studying proverbs in English I have come across a number of them which have either strikingly or fairly comparable counterparts in Hoyloy. I have picked out a dozen of them as listed below.
1. All's well that ends well.
[ho-(+)/tau+ bput=Ru-(_)/ho-(+)/b(/w)e']
2. The ass loaded with gold still eats thistles.
[hONg-(_)dte"/sin=(-) ki(E)K=tzyaQ_/mya-]
3. Carrying coals to Newcastle.
[dta~-/tsa+ Rip_/lai_swa~=(-)]
4. Children should be seen and not heard.
[gin=(+)na=(+)laNg+ u_/hi~- bo-(_)/tswi']
5. Christmas comes but once a year.
[bo-(_)/dtaK_qaNg-/dti_de=\q(/w)e"ni+]
6. Come with the wind, go with the water.
cf.What is got over the Devil's back is spent under his belly.
[hyau-hi(E)Ng_/tzi~+ sit=dti(E)K=/kai=(-)]
7. From shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations.
[sa~-dtai- lyap_tzi(E)K- it=dtai- ki(E)Ng-kONg=(-)]
8. God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb.
[ti~-qONg=(-) tya~"/gONg_laNg+]
9. He who pays the piper calls the tune.
[tsut=/tzi~+|e-(') laNg+ tzu-(+)i']
10. Ne'er cast a clout till May be out.
[yau-(+)b(/w)e_/tzyaQ_/go_g(/w)eQ_tz(/w)eQ"/tzaNg//
pO-mi-(_)hyu-(_)a" m_taNg-/bpaNg']
11. Out of the frying-pan into the fire.
[tzau-(+)tsat=(+/-) dtu-(+)/dtyoQ_\hO"]
12. The pot calls the kettle black.
[qu=(-) tsyo"/ bpiQ- bo-(_)/b(/w)e=(+)lyu=(-)]
In what follows, we shall have some discussion with respect to semantics, structure and metaphor applicable in the two distinctly different languages that make the two comparable versions of each saying function alike. Explanatory notes are provided for all versions in Hoyloy so as to help those who are not versed in Hoyloy grasp the similarity of meaning for each pair.
1. All's well that ends well. [ho-(+)/tau+ bput=Ru-(_)/ho-(+)/b(/w)e'] 1) 2) 3) 4) Good beginning is not comparable to good ending/Good ending is more preferable than good beginning. 1) [ho"] good, well. 2) [tau+] lit. head. 3) [bput=Ru+] not comparable. 4) [b(/w)e"] lit. tail.
The Englsih version is constructed for laudation of good ending. That is to say, all hardship gets compensated by the eventual achievement. The Hoyloy version shows preference for good ending through comparative depreciation of good beginning. Accordingly, with this saying in mind, for example, one would rather be conservative about any early success in a career, especially if the future looks uncertain.
2. The ass loaded with gold still eats thistles*. [hONg-(_)dte"/sin=(-) kit=tzyaQ_/mya-] 1) 2) 3) 4) Emperor for the outward self, beggar for the inward self/ wealthy like an emperor, miserable like a beggar. 1) [hONg-(_)dte'] emperor. 2) [sin=(-)] lit. body. 3) [kit=tzyaQ=(+/-)] beggar. 4) [mya-] life, destiny (presumed to be part of one's life)
The two words for 'body' and 'life' in Hoyloy are used as complements, something like the outward self and the inward self of a person. 'Emperor' and 'beggar' are opposites. In this saying, used as an analogy for a miser keeping a huge wealth but not inclined to spend it, the wealth owned is similarized by what an emperor posseses and the miserable way of life by what a beggar behaves.
In the English version a fool is implied by the word 'ass'. A foolish person may have something to do with his/her nature but not his/her destiny. Perhaps life is under influence of one's nature rather than destiny.
*'Or will thou, being keeper of the cash, like an ass that carries dainties, feed on thistles?' (David Pickering 1997: Cassell English Proverbs p.9)
3. Carrying coals to Newcastle. [dta~-/tsa+ Rip_/lai_swa~=(-)] 1) 2) 3) 4) Carrying firewood to the inner mountain. 1) [dta~=] to carry two balanced loads hanging down on a (bamboo) pole which is usually split and cut to the flat shape with projected ends. 2) [tsa+] firewood. 3) [Rip=(+/-)] to enter. 4) [lai_swa~=(-)] inner mountain.
There are some peculiar verbs in Hoyloy for different ways of carrying. In addition to [dta~=] just mentioned, you have, for examples, [gya+] for to hold in upright position, [qNg=] for to carry on the shoulder jointly by two or more persons such as for a sedan chair, [po-] for to hold in arms, [ai~-] for to carry (a baby) on the back, and [pai~-] for to carry on the back. Firewood being sort of bulky and heavy, the common way of carrying it is with a bamboo pole as described above especially in the old days.
The Englsih word 'to carry', by contrast, has nothing to do with any of the manners of performance such as each of these Hoyloy verbs does. There is no equivalent word in Hoyloy to represent the underlying concept of this English verb. If you will ever try to put it into Hoyloy, you may think of using [tzaQ-] (to bring along by oneself) or [pwe'] (to deliver/send off) depending on the context. But that can be done only expediently.
Turning back to the topic of our discussrion, the two versions are completely comparable to each other both structurally and metaphorically.
4. Children should be seen and not heard. [gin=(+)na=(+)laNg+ u_/hi~- bo-(_)/tswi'] 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 1) [gin=(+)na=(+)laNg+] children. 2) [u-] to have. 3) [hi~=] for [hi~-(_)a"] ears. 4) [bo+] to have none. 5) [tswi'] mouths.
Literally the Hoyloy version means 'children (should) have ears but no mounths', but the proverbial meaning is exactly the same as the English version.
5. Christmas comes but once a year. [bo-(_)/ dtaK_qaNg-/dti_de=\q(/w)e"ni+] 1) 2) 3) 4) There is no (such thing as) everyday for passing the year; i.e. New year doesn't fall on everyday. 1) [bo+] there is none. 2) [dtaK_qaNg=] everyday. 3) [dti-|de'] being there but used here in linking prosody for progressive aspect marker. 4) [q(/w)e"ni+] lit. passing the year.
The Hoyloy people enjoy the traditional Chinese Lunar New Year, which they call Old Calendar Year Passing*, as much as the English people do Christmas.
* When the Japanese sovereign took possession of Taiwan from the Manchurian Empire in 1895, the Gregorian calendar was introduced to this island country. Except for official occassions, the Taiwanese kept using the Chinese calendar for civilian purposes. The Gregorian calendar has been since named as New Calendar [sin-li(E)K=(+/-)] and the Chinese lunar calendar as Old Calendar [qu_li(E)K=(+/-)].
6. Come with the wind, go with the water. cf.What is got over the Devil's back is spent under his belly. [hyau-hi(E)Ng_/tzi~+ sit=dti(E)K=/kai=(-)] 1) 2) 3) 4) Money earned unduly is spent unduly. 1) [hyau-hi(E)Ng-] undue; unfortunate. 2) [tzi~+] money. 3) [sit=dti(E)K-] extraordinarily bad. 4) [kai=(-)] to spend.
Other than this saying and the fixed expression [hyau-hi(E)Ng_sit=dti(E)K-], the word [sit=dti(E)K-] is scarecely used in daily Hoyloy.
In this saying, the Hoyloy words of [hyau-hi(E)Ng-] and [sit=dti(E)K-] are synonymous literally and so are the two phrases in Englsih 'with the wind' and 'with the water' figuratively.
7. From shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations. [sa~-dtai- lyap_tzi(E)K- it=dtai- ki(E)Ng-kONg=(-)] 1) 2) 3) 4) Accumulated grain by grain in three generations, exhausted in one. 1) [sa~-dtai-] three generations. 2) [lyap_tzi(E)K] to accumulate grain by grain. 3) [it=dtai-] one generation. 4) [ki(E)Ng-kONg=] to pour out till empty i.e. to lose all property one has.
Note that the word [ki(E)Ng-kONg=] is not part of the daily vocabulary in Hoyloy. You come across the word when you come across the saying. By changeing the tone of the morpheme [ki(E)Ng=] (to pour empty) which is key to the meaning of the word of [ki(E)Ng-kONg=], we get the word [ki(E)Ng+] (to gather up thoroughly). What is interesting about the relation between the word [ki(E)Ng+] and the word [ki(E)Ng-kONg=] as used in the above saying is that many people often try to gather up thoroughly whatever is valuable after having lost all of their property; namely [ki(E)Ng-kONg=].
8. God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb*. [ti~-qONg=(-) tya~"/gONg_laNg+] 1) 2) 3) The god of heaven cares for the simple-minded people. 1) [ti~-qONg=(-)] the god of heaven. 2) [tya~'] to care affectionately. 3) [gONg_laNg+] simple-minded people.
For ordinary usage, the word [gONg_laNg+] in Hoyloy may be translated as 'fools' in English. But such wording is not adequate for the meaning of the saying.
*'...a reworking of the older French saying Dieu mesure le froid a la brebi tondue (God measures the cold to the shorn sheep)...lambs, in fact, are never shorn.' (David Pickering 1997: Cassell English Proverbs p.112)
9. He who pays the piper calls the tune.
[tsut=/tzi~+ e-(') laNg+ tzu-(+)i']
1) 2) 3) 4) 5)
The persons who pays is in command.
1) [tsut-] to offer/put forth. 2) [tzi~+] money. 3) relative pronoun*. 4) [laNg+]
person. 5) [tzu-(+)i'] to decide at one's own will.
The Hoyloy version is exactly what the saying in English is meant.
*The so-called relative pronoun in Hoyloy is a variant of the deflected numerative [e+]. Please refer to The mighty-e for more details.
10. Ne'er cast a clout till May be out. [yau-(+)b(/w)e_/tzyaQ_/go_g(/w)eQ_tz(/w)eQ"/tzaNg'// 1) 2) 3) 4) pO-mi-(_)hyu-(_)a" m_taNg-/bpaNg'] 5) 6) 7) 1) [yau-(+)b(/w)e-] not yet. 2) [tzyaQ=(+/-)] to eat. 3) [go_g(/w)eQ_tz(/w)eQ-]*1 Double Fifth Festival. 4) [tzaNg'] rice wrapt-ups*2. 5) [pO-mi-(_)hyu-(_)a"] warm dresses padded with cotton. 6) [m_taNg=] do not. 7) [bpaNg'] to drop off.
Don't set aside your warm dresses till you have eaten the rice wrapt-ups for Double Fifth Festival, because you should be on the lookout for some cold weather before the summer time following the festival has come.
*1Literally 'fifth moon festival'. It falls on the fifth day of the fifth moon by the traditional Chinese calendar -- by Gregorian calendar it shifts in different years roughly from late May to around the summer solstice.
*2Rice wrapt-ups are especially prepared by tradition for Double Fifth Festival. There are different ways of preparation, which takes some special kind of sticky rice for base material. The most popular one is stuffed with a mixture of chopped pork, egg yolk, peanut, mushroom and so forth. For serving the vegetarians, ingredients mostly made of bean or only sweet peanut or red bean is used. The non-stuffed preparation, to be served with sauce or syrup, has the rice mixed with a small percentage of some additive called [qi(/E)~=] (lye or alkali), which may keep the rice from getting sour for several days. Each wrapt-up has the rice packed with a bamboo leaf in a four-corner shape and tightened with a string for cooking in the water.
11. Out of the frying-pan into the fire. [tzau-(+)tsat=(+/-) dtu-(+)dtyoQ_\hO"] 1) 2) 3) Fleeing from the robber, running into the tiger. 1) [tzau-(+)tsat=(+/-)] to run away from the robber. In colloquial Hoyloy the word [tsat=(+/-)] usually means [tsat_a"] thieves or burglars as in [qyONg_qONg"tsat=(+/-)] (housebreakers), but in this saying it means robbers [qyONg-(_)dto-]. 2) [dtu"|dtyoQ'] to encounter. 3) [hO"] tigers.
Looking at the Englsih version and the Hoyloy version at the same time, we get the analogy of the frying-pan versus the fire and the robber versus the tiger.
12. The pot calls the kettle black. [qu=(-) tsyo"/ bpiQ- bo-(_)/b(/w)e=(+)lyu=(-)] 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 1) [qu=(-)] tortoises or turtles. 2) [tsyo'] to laugh at/ridicule. 3) [bpiQ-] small aquatic turtles with soft and sooth shell; often raised for gourmets. 4) [bo+] to have none. 5) [b(/w)e=(+)lyu=(-)] tails.
The turtle called [bpiQ-] seems to have a better looking than his cousin called [qu=]. But the cousin, ignorant of the same shortcoming he has himself, finds his relative ridiculous for being tailless*. Both are unfortunately unable to look over their backs.
*A turtle is usually seen as slow-moving padded shell with four legs and a beaked head which are contractable. The tail, if you ever notice it, is shyly small and easily hidden.
The English and Hoyloy versions of this saying are parallel to each other in structure and the didactic motive manifested identical from one version to the other.
-- For audio play of Hoyloy sentences 1 through 12, click here. --
-- Options for pronunciation guidance:syllabic tone patterns | vowels | consonants | practical symbols
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