Arabic Proverbs (Bilingual Proverbs) (Paperback)

by Joseph Hanki (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
First published in Egypt in 1987, this collection contains 600 Arabic proverbs with translations and, where appropriate, explanations of the customs which gave rise to the proverb. Many show recognizable Biblical influence.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Hippocrene Books (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0781806313
• ISBN-13: 978-0781806312
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,593,548 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lost in Proverb-Land, April 9, 2002

By	"[e-mail]" (Connecticut, United States) - See all my reviews

Given that intriguing expressions and turns of phrase often provide a unique glimpse into any culture, such a book as this one should not only provide insightful interpretations of any given proverb, but should also be well organized and indexed. Unfortunately, this book fails completely in these latter two respects. There is no index whatsoever, and the order in which the proverbs appear is neither linguistic nor thematic (I suspect that the entries were made in the order they were gathered during the compiler's research). That is such a loss! Still, I enjoyed reading the book cover to cover, savoring not only the original proverbs (which appear in Arabic script rather than in transliterated Roman letters), but also delving into the world opened up by the anecdotes that accompanied many of the entries, as well as the fairly literal translations made. One of my favorites (p. 94): Eish arraf al-hamir fi akl al-ganzabil "What do donkeys know of preserved ginger" (Do not cast pearls before swine). One should note that the proverbs are described as being "current in Egypt" (19th century c.e.?), and thus are not entirely representative of the Arab world in general.