Editing Proverb (section)

== Definitions ==
[[Lord John Russell]] ({{Circa|1850}}) observed poetically that a "proverb is the wit of one, and the wisdom of many."<ref>p. 25. Wolfgang Mieder. 1993. "The wit of one, and the wisdom of many: General thoughts on the nature of the proverb. ''Proverbs are never out of season: Popular wisdom in the modern age'' 3–40. Oxford University Press.</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Agrawal |first=Dr K. P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zo6tEAAAQBAJ&dq=Lord+John+Russell+(c.+1850)+observed+poetically+that+a+%22proverb+is+the+wit+of+one,+and+the+wisdom+of+many.%22&pg=PA13 |title=Tresure Of Book: On Poetries, Ghazals, Proverbs, Riddles, Idioms, Jokes and Quotes |date=2023-02-12 |publisher=Shashwat Publication |isbn=978-93-95362-30-6 |pages=13 |language=en}}</ref> But giving the word "proverb" the sort of definition theorists need has proven to be a difficult task, and although scholars often quote [[Archer Taylor]]'s argument that formulating a scientific "definition of a proverb is too difficult to repay the undertaking... An incommunicable quality tells us this sentence is proverbial and that one is not.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mieder |first=Wolfgang |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s0WhBgAAQBAJ&dq=An+incommunicable+quality+tells+us+this+sentence+is+proverbial+and+that+one+is+not.&pg=PA400 |title=Wise Words Pbdirect: Essays on the Proverb |date=2015-02-11 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-54924-6 |pages=400 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mieder |first=Wolfgang |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OgAbBwAAQBAJ&dq=An+incommunicable+quality+tells+us+this+sentence+is+proverbial+and+that+one+is+not.&pg=PT24 |title=Behold the Proverbs of a People: Proverbial Wisdom in Culture, Literature, and Politics |date=2014-10-30 |publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi |isbn=978-1-62674-303-8 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Honeck |first=Richard P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U8jORqznKfsC&dq=An+incommunicable+quality+tells+us+this+sentence+is+proverbial+and+that+one+is+not.&pg=PT22 |title=A Proverb in Mind: The Cognitive Science of Proverbial Wit and Wisdom |date=2013-05-13 |publisher=Psychology Press |isbn=978-1-134-74137-3 |language=en}}</ref> Hence no definition will enable us to identify positively a sentence as proverbial,"<ref>p. 3 Archer Taylor. 1931. ''The Proverb''. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.</ref> many students of proverbs have attempted to itemize their essential characteristics.<ref name=":1" />

More constructively, [[Wolfgang Mieder]] has proposed the following definition, "A proverb is a short, generally known sentence of the folk which contains wisdom, truth, morals, and traditional views in a metaphorical, fixed, and memorizable form and which is handed down from generation to generation".<ref>p. 5. Wolfgang Mieder. 1993. "The wit of one, and the wisdom of many: General thoughts on the nature of the proverb. Proverbs are never out of season: Popular wisdom in the modern age 3–40. Oxford University Press.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=Mark |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aPSmBgAAQBAJ&dq=Mieder+has+proposed+the+following+definition,+%22A+proverb+is+a+short,+generally+known+sentence+of+the+folk+which+contains+wisdom,+truth,+morals,+and+traditional+views+in+a+metaphorical,+fixed,+and+memorizable+form+and+which+is+handed+down+from+generation+to+generation%22&pg=PA281 |title=Language Crisis in the Ryukyus: The Price for Being Japanese? |last2=Heinrich |first2=Patrick |date=2015-01-12 |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |isbn=978-1-4438-7346-8 |pages=281 |language=en}}</ref>  To distinguish proverbs from idioms, cliches, etc., Norrick created a table of [[distinctive feature]]s, an abstract tool originally developed for linguistics.<ref>p. 73. Neil Norrick. 1985. ''How Proverbs Mean: Semantic Studies in English Proverbs''. Amsterdam: Mouton.</ref> Prahlad distinguishes proverbs from some other, closely related types of sayings, "True proverbs must further be distinguished from other types of proverbial speech, e.g. proverbial phrases, [[Wellerism]]s, maxims, quotations, and proverbial comparisons."<ref>p. 33. Sw. Anand Prahlad. 1996. ''African-American Proverbs in Context''. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.</ref> Based on Persian proverbs, Zolfaghari and Ameri propose the following definition: "A proverb is a short sentence, which is well-known and at times rhythmic, including advice, sage themes and ethnic experiences, comprising simile, metaphor or irony which is well-known among people for its fluent wording, clarity of expression, simplicity, expansiveness and generality and is used either with or without change."<ref>p. 107, Hassan Zolfaghari & Hayat Ameri. "Persian Proverbs: Definitions and Characteristics". ''Journal of Islamic and Human Advanced Research'' 2(2012) 93–108.</ref>

There are many sayings in English that are commonly referred to as "proverbs", such as weather sayings.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Agrawal |first=Dr K. P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zo6tEAAAQBAJ&dq=There+are+many+sayings+in+English+that+are+commonly+referred+to+as+%22proverbs%22,+such+as+weather+sayings.&pg=PA14 |title=Tresure Of Book: On Poetries, Ghazals, Proverbs, Riddles, Idioms, Jokes and Quotes |date=2023-02-12 |publisher=Shashwat Publication |isbn=978-93-95362-30-6 |pages=14 |language=en}}</ref> [[Alan Dundes]], however, rejects including such sayings among truly proverbs: "Are weather proverbs proverbs? I would say emphatically 'No!'"<ref>p. 45. Alan Dundes. 1984. On whether weather 'proverbs' are proverbs. ''Proverbium'' 1:39–46. Also, 1989, in ''Folklore Matters'' edited by Alan Dundes, 92–97. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press.</ref><ref name=":2" /> The definition of "proverb" has also changed over the years. For example, the following was labeled "A Yorkshire proverb" in 1883, but would not be categorized as a proverb by most today, "as throng as Throp's wife when she hanged herself with a dish-cloth".<ref>A Yorkshire proverb. 1883. ''The Academy''. July 14, no. 584. p.30.</ref> The changing of the definition of "proverb" is also noted in [[Turkish language|Turkish]].<ref>Ezgi Ulusoy Aranyosi. 2010. "Atasözü neydi, ne oldu?" ["What was, and what now is, a 'proverb'?"]. ''Millî Folklor: International and Quarterly Journal of Cultural Studies'' 11.88: 5–15.</ref>

In other languages and cultures, the definition of "proverb" also differs from English.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=G |first1=Atindogbe, Gratien |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i_XMDQAAQBAJ&dq=In+other+languages+and+cultures,+the+definition+of+%22proverb%22+also+differs+from+English.&pg=PA76 |title=Proceedings of the 7th World Congress of African Linguistics, Buea, 17-21 August 2012: Volume One |last2=Fogwe |first2=Chibaka, Evelyn |date=2016-12-19 |publisher=Langaa RPCIG |isbn=978-9956-764-38-9 |pages=76 |language=en}}</ref> In the [[Chumburung language]] of Ghana, "''aŋase'' are literal proverbs and ''akpare'' are metaphoric ones".<ref>p. 64. Gillian Hansford. 2003. Understanding Chumburung proverbs. ''Journal of West African Languages'' 30.1:57–82.</ref> Among the [[Edo language|Bini]] of Nigeria, there are three words that are used to translate "proverb": ''ere, ivbe'', and ''itan''. The first relates to historical events, the second relates to current events, and the third was "linguistic ornamentation in formal discourse".<ref>p. 4,5. Daniel Ben-Amos. Introduction: Folklore in African Society. ''Forms of Folklore in Africa'', edited by Bernth Lindfors, pp. 1–36. Austin: University of Texas.</ref> Among the [[Balochi language|Balochi]] of Pakistan and Afghanistan, there is a word ''batal'' for ordinary proverbs and ''bassīttuks'' for "proverbs with background stories".<ref>p. 43. Sabir Badalkhan. 2000. "Ropes break at the weakest point": Some examples of Balochi proverbs with background stories. ''Proverbium'' 17:43–69.</ref>

There are also language communities that combine proverbs and riddles in some sayings, leading some scholars to create the label "proverb riddles".<ref>John C. Messenger, Jr. Anang Proverb-Riddles. The Journal of American Folklore Vol. 73, No. 289 (July–September 1960), pp. 225–235.</ref><ref>p. 418. Finnegan, Ruth. ''Oral Literature in Africa''. The Saylor Foundation, 1982.</ref><ref>Umoh, S. J. 2007. The Ibibio Proverb{{snd}}Riddles and Language Pedagogy. ''International Journal of Linguistics and Communication'' 11(2), 8–13.</ref>

Another similar construction is an [[idiom]]atic phrase. Sometimes it is difficult to draw a distinction between idiomatic phrase and proverbial expression. In both of them the meaning does not immediately follow from the phrase. The difference is that an idiomatic phrase involves figurative language in its components, while in a proverbial phrase the figurative meaning is the extension of its literal meaning. Some experts classify proverbs and proverbial phrases as types of idioms.<ref>Lexicography: Critical Concepts (2003) R. R. K. Hartmann, Mick R K Smith, {{ISBN|0-415-25365-9}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=x8LpWk9sPOEC&dq=%22proverbial+phrases+are%22&pg=PA303 p. 303]</ref>