The proverbs belong to the linguistic inheritance of a country. The question of their conservation arises then (i.e. of their written setting) and above all the collection of this knowledge diffuse, more rural than urban and especially carried by the old generations. This knowledge tends to be lost with the movements of urbanization, modernization, schooling of the last decades which develop, standardized, rationalized the written culture and cut its local roots, rural and traditional.

List proverbs of the Ivory Coast

Proverbs Ashantis

• No tree gave Fruit S without to have had initially Fleur S.

Baoulés proverbs

• the Poule knows the paddle but it awaits the song of the cock
• the chief resembles the dustbin. " (one unpacks all, troubles, problems and consents to him)
• the foreigner does not know the path which passes under the water-bottles
• When the head is there, the Genou does not wear the hat
• If you do not know the village, you there wives the witch

Proverbs nouchis

• Cafard does not like recreation or one raises queer.
• It is not nivaquine one takes to make candy.
• the behind of a woman is softer than her head.
• the Pineapples, are small, are large, are sweetened, in other words there is no little girl.
• Your foot my foot.
• Significance : One moves together
• Tout close is not far.
• Significance : Patience, patience
• Moustique does not like recreation where one applauds!

Proverbs written by personalities

• That which is not afraid does not have courage. (of Douk Saga)

• Significance : It is already necessary to have felt the fear to have courage to surmount it
• Signification : It is necessary to have courage to acknowledge to be afraid certain times .
• Découragement is not of the Ivory Coast. (of F. Houphouet Boigny)
• It is necessary to wait to have crossed all the river before making fun of the crocodile. (of Yvan Mkarna)
• Significance : do not make fun of somebody who does something of which you did not finish yet
• the Paix is not a vain word, but a behavior. (of F. Houphouet Boigny)
• mets not your finger enters the bark and the tree. (of Yvan Mkarna)
• Significance : Mêle you with what looks at you .
• One is stuck, tightened, pointed, cemented No Boging! (of Decothey)
• Significance : I do not move!
• Premier gaou (ignoramus, animal) is not gaou it is second gaou which is niata (idiotic). (of Magic System)
• Significance : One is not made deceive 2 times
• Seuls the imbeciles do not change (F. Houphouet Boigny)

Other proverbs

• With the garden of lawyer, a lawsuit is a fruit tree which enracine and does not die.
• Before saying that somebody is thin, its own form should initially be looked at.
• Significance : Observes you before criticizing the others
• That which swallows a whole Coconut trusts its anus.
• Significance : the coconut thus gives the Diarrhée…
• That, which is on the back of the elephant should not fear the Rosée.
• It is in my mouth that you want to eat your pepper:
• Significance : You want to make use of me to say what you oses not to say .
• It is small but it is a long time
• It is when the Poulet dies that it struggles more (at the time of sticking)
• It is Sorcier which knows his/her friend wizard
• Signification : the wizards know each other between them
• Gros Cœur does not eat a hot Riz.
• Behind a great man, always hides a woman of fire
• the Oiseau never makes palaver with the Arbre, because it always ends up being posed there.
• Significance : the bird does not dispute with the abre because it needs its branches to be posed there.
• the culture does not have a border
• the cheerfulness of the Chien is in its tail.
• the Gloire seldom does not accompany the memory by those which used their life to seek it but it comes to sit down on the modest tomb that which has it excavation
• patience is a way of Or
• small the black ant can enter to the man, but this man cannot enter to it.
• the Vie is short film in which each one made its Scénario
• the Lézard believes that it grew bigger whereas it is its belly which is swollen.
• Significance : does not trust appearances
• elegance is not synonymous with delinquency.
• Significance : does not judge a person by her clothing .
• the Enemies of the Man it is the Man.
• people do not love people but they like the money of people.
• the sheep walk together but do not have the same price
• Même with a dog which does not bark one should not withdraw a bone without precaution.
• Même the black Poule lays white eggs.
• mets not of sand in my Attiéké.
• does not speak about kilos of Viande to somebody who suffers from the teeth
• Signification : does not spoil my businesses .
• One is not there for Rire, because one did not laugh to be there
• One does not await the rain to wash
• Signification : Prends the initiatives
• One cannot cross the Jungle with a ticket of Zoo
• One never goes to the meeting of what is on the way.
• Significance : is not in a hurry
• One cannot help that which likes to suffer
• Partout where one types that swells
• Petit hammer breaks gors stones
• Peu imports the thinness of the elephant, its testicles always fill a pot
• When two elephants fight, it is the grass which suffers.
• When blazing it flowers, the White decays.
• When the short-sighted become visionaries, the dumb are made hear.
• When the branches quarrel, the roots are embraced.
• If the crocodile wants to be sewn a pants, it is because it knows where to put its tail.
• When you have too pity, you make pity
• When you are too nice, one takes to you for animal
• When you piss on the wall of somebody, the last drop is for your shoes.
• Significance : All that you make, you it pays .
• Seuls is the imbeciles who always change.
• If the woman is more beautiful than you, it is that God kept that for him.
• If you call your sons ordering, it will come later to require the Impôt of you.
• If you take to me you take your misfortune and if you me leashes you leashes your happiness.
• Significance : does not test with me
• If you see a snake on a bicycle, it is that it found a means of pedalling without the feet….
• a man should not be rancorous.