ARAM, 21 (2009) 281-288. doi: 10.2143/ARAM.21.0.

2047096

Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

Dr. Helen Younansardaroud

(Freie Universität Berlin)

0. Introduction

Proverbs are seen as a remnant of old wisdom, which were retained as a basic
form of a people’s vernacular during daily conversation. If we follow Friedrich
Seiler’s1 definition, there are proverbs which a) reoccur in the vernacular, b) are
self- contained, c) sayings which teach or are educational, d) and also appear
in a higher form. The Oxford English Dictionary2 definitions embody also
these ideas: a Proverb is: “A short pithy saying in common and recognized
use; a concise sentence, often metaphorical or alliterative in form, which is
held to express some truth ascertained by experience or observation and famil-
iar to all; an adage, a wise saw.” The figurative mode of so-called proverbial
phrases (idioms) spices normal discussion with its educational way of expres-
sion. According to Mathilde Hain3 such phrases or idioms became established
conversational rules because they have a long tradition behind them and there-
fore became part of the language, like for example in German ‘den Bogen
überspannen’ from Middle age archery, it means: ‘to overstep the mark, to aim
too high’4. The Oxford English Dictionary5 defines an idiom as: “A form of
expression, grammatical construction, phrase, etc., peculiar to a language; a
peculiarity of phraseology approved by the usage of a language, and often
having a signification other that its grammatical or logical one.”
Recent research has shown that the didactic function of the idiom is only
one of many functional possibilities with other being e.g. to comfort, to give
advice, to explain or as an argument, forecast or a statement, etc.6

1  See Friedrich Seiler, Deutsche Sprichwörterkunde. München, 1922, (reprint 1967), in:
Adolf Matthias, Handbuch des deutschen Unterrichts an höheren Schulen, vol. 4/3. Cf. also
Will-Erich Peuckert and Otto Lauffer, Volkskunde: Quellen und Forschungen seit 1930, Bern,
1951, pp. 255ff. The translation is by the author.
2  The Oxford English Dictionary, vol. XII, 2. Edition, Oxford, 1989, p. 712.
3  Mathilde Hain, “Das Sprichwort”, in: Ergebnisse der Sprichwörterforschung, ed. by Wolf-
gang Mieder, Bern [a.o.], 1978, pp. 20-21.
4  For the translation of this idiom see Ronald Taylor and Walter Gottschalk, A German-
English Dictionary of Idioms, München, 1960, p. 74.
5  The Oxford English Dictionary, vol. VII, 2. Edition, Oxford, 1989, p. 624.
6  See e. g., A. Dundes, “On the structure of the Proverb”, in: Proverbium 25 (1975), pp. 961-
973.

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 282 Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

Paremiological study has a long history.7 The oldest written example of a prov-
erb collection is found on the Sumerian proverb Tablets or boards.8 According
to Sprichtwörter-Bibliographie of Otto Moll9 the Paremiological writings of the
Greek-Roman era exhibit an impressive abundance of material. The Talmudic-
Biblical Literature is also rich in proverbial sayings. Among the ancient Egyptian,
Old-Oriental and Biblical Hebrew proverb sources (Old and New Testament e.g.
Solomon, Jesus Sirach) there is the Story of AÌiqar in Old Aramaic and Old
Syriac, which contains many fables and proverbs.

I.  Collection of Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

The well-known native proverb collections of Modern Assyrian are the collec-
tions of Benjamin Arsanis10, Baba bet-Lachin,11 and Mansur Robel Zakarya12.
Another example is monumental collection of Samuel Dinkha and Raman

7  One of the foremost paremiological scholar is Wolfgang Mieder, who has produced many vol-
umes on various paremiological aspects since 1984; see for example, Wolfgang Mieder, Investiga-
tions of proverbs, proverbial expressions, quotations and clichés: a bibliography of explanatory
essays which appeared in ‘Notes and queries’ <1849-1983> (Sprichwörterforschung; 4), Bern [a.o.],
1984; idem (ed.), Ergebnisse der Sprichwörterforschung (Europäische Hochschulschriften; 1/192),
Bern 1978; idem, Deutsche Redensarten, Sprichwörter und Zitate: Studien zu ihrer Herkunft, Über-
lieferung und Verwendung, Wien, 1995; idem, Proverbs in world literature: a bibliography. New
York/Washington, 1996; idem, Sprichwörter/Redensarten – Parömiologie, (Studien­­bibliographien
Sprachwissenschaft; 27), Heidelberg, 1999. See also, “International Proverb Scholarship: an Updated
Bibliography, 1997 (DE PROVERBIO. An Electronic Journal of International Proverb Studies –
Wolfgang Mieder, University of Tasmania, Australia); International Bibliography of new and
reprinted proverb collections, 1997 (DE PROVERBIO. An Electronic Journal of International
Proverb Studies – Wolfgang Mieder)”, http://www.ids-mannheim.de/quellen/biblio.html#sprichw
and http://cogweb.ucla.edu/ Discourse/Proverbs/Bibliography.html, which contain further literature.
8  For Sumerian proverbs see for example, J. J. van Dijk, La sagesse suméro-accadienne:
Recherches sur les genres littéraires des textes sapientiaux avec choix de textes, Leiden, 1953;
Edmund I. Gordon, Sumerian Proverbs and their cultural significanc,. Diss, Pennsylvania, 1955;
idem, “Sumerian Animal Proverbs and Fables: ‘Collection Five’”, Journal of Cuneiform Stud-
ies, 12 (1958), vol. XII, nos. 1 & 2; idem, Sumerian Proverbs. Glimpses of everyday life in Ancient
Mesopotamia, Philadelphia, 1959. See also W. G. Babylonian Wisdem Literature, Oxford, 1960.
9  See Otto Moll, Sprichtwörter-Bibliographie. Frankfurt, 1958, pp. 43ff, which contains fur-
ther literature. Cf. also Archer Taylor, The Proverb, Cambridge, 1931-34.
10  Benjamin Arsanis, [Matle u-qesemyate d-}Aturaye], Tehran, 1958.
See also Rudolf Macuch and Estiphan Panoussi, Neusyrische Chrestomathie, (Potra Linguarum
Orientalium, N. S. XIII), Wiesbaden, 1974, p. 90[155]. On Arsanis’s life and his literary works
see Pera Sarmas, [Tas{ ita seprayuta }Atorayta], vol. 1, Tehran, 1962,
p. 249; Rudolf Macuch, Geschichte der spät- und neusyrischen Literatur, Berlin, 1976, p. 279f;
Samuel Dinkha, [Tas{ ita psiqta d-seprayuta }Atorayta Ìatta],
vol. 1., Milpitas, California, 1991, pp. 112-113.
11  Baba bet-Lachin, [Îasula], Tehran, 1976. I would like to thank Dr. Robert Paulissian
for sending me a copy of this book. On bet-Lachin’s life and his literary works see Sarmas,
Tas{ ita, vol. 3, 1970, pp. 14ff.; Macuch, Geschichte, p. 298; Dinkha, Tas{ ita, vol. 2, pp. 103ff.
12  Mansur Robel Zakarya, [Ktaßa d-Matle], Baghdad, 1977. On Zakarya’s life and
his literary works see Dinkha, Tas{ ita, vol. 2, pp. 46-49.

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 H. Younansardaroud 283

Bitshamoon13 (2004)   [A Treasury of

Popular Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms], which are based on the above col-
lections including the Chrestomatie of Konstantin Tseretelis14 as well as the
proverbs from the Grammar of Arthur John Maclean15, Journal of Assyrian
Academic Studies16 and KuÌßa }Aturaya. The collection of Dinkha and Bit-
shamoon includes about 2500 proverbs. The proverbs presented by Dinkha
and Bitshamoon were generally gleaned from recorded Neo-Aramaic speech
or folktales told by members of the Assyrian community.17 In the foreground
there are three dialects Baznaye, Barwarnaye and Gilwaye respectively.18
After a short definition of the terms the authors discuss the development of
these sayings.19 This is followed by a differentiation between descriptive, edu-
cational and popular proverbs. The proverbs are alphabetically arranged after
the initial word in this Collection; however the work contains, apart from
some exceptions, neither an indication of source nor proverb verification.

A)  State of research

Compared to the great number of proverbs published in the Roman languages,

even in the major languages of the Near East,20 very little so far has been pub-
lished in minor dialects such as Neo-Aramaic of the Assyrian. Accordingly,
studies of the Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms are unsuccessful.
The following publications described at least some parts of Modern Assyrian
Proverbs and Idioms:21

13  Samuel Dinkha and Raman Bitshamoon, , [Simta d-Matle

u- ÌasÌate {ammaye d-}Aturaye], San Jose, 2004, p. 11.
14  Konstantin G. Tsereteli, Chrestomatija sovremennogo assirijskogo jazyka so slovar}om,
Tbilisi, 1958 (reprint 1980), p. 16-17. I would like to thank Professor Daniel Lachini from Tbilisi
for sending me this book.
15  Arthur John Maclean, Grammar of the dialects of Vernacular Syriac. Cambridge, 1895
(reprint Amsterdam 1971), pp. 345-358.
16  See Daniel D. bet-Benjamin, “ ”, Journal of Assyrian Academic Stud-
ies XI/2 (1997), pp. 48-52; XII/1 (1998), pp. 50-52; XI/2 (2006), p. 69.
17  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 9f.
18 Ibid., p. 12.
19 Ibid., pp. 4ff.
20  See e. g., A. A. Dehkhoda, Amsâl va Hekam (Proverbs and Sayings), (in Persian), 4 vols,
Tehran, 1931; Enno Littmann, Morgenländische Spruchweisheit: arabische Sprichwörter und
Rätsel, Leipzig, 1937; Yoseph Yoel Rivlin, “Pitgamim Bi-Leson Targum”, Reshumot, n. s. 1 (1945),
pp. 207-215; (1946), pp. 209-214; S. D. F. Goitein, “The Origin and Historical Significance of
the Present-Day Arabic Proverbs”, Islamic Culture 26 (1952), pp. 169f.; L. P. Elwell-Suton, Per-
sian Proverbs, London, 1954; F. F. Tülbentçi, Türk Atasözleri ve Deyimleri, (in Turkish), Istanbul,
1963; O. Dzhalilov and Dz. Dzalilov, Mesele û Met}elokê K}urda bi Zimanê K}urdî û Rûsî =
Kurdskie Poslovitsy I Pogovorki na Kurdskom I Russkom Iazykakh, Moskva, 1972; A. Stahl,
Proverbs of Jewish Communities, (in Hebrew), Tel Aviv, 1975.
21 Note that D. Schahbaz ’s article “Erzählungen, Sprichwörter der heutigen Syrer in Nord-
persian. Texte im Dialekt von Urmia”, Mitteilungen des Seminars für Orientalische Sprachen zu
Berlin, III. Abt., (1919), pp. 112-126 contains no proverbs.

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 284 Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

In 1882 Albert Socin22 published 23 Proverbs in his Die neuaramäischen

Dialekte von Urmia bis Mosul including a German translation.
In 1895 the Anglican missionary Arthur John Maclean23 published 130 Prov-
erbs in his Grammar of the Dialects of Vernacular Syriac including an English
translation with explanations given by the Assyrians from whom the proverbs
were collected.
In 1902 Maurice Chamizer24 provided an extracts with 101 Proverbs from Paul
Bedjan’s collection of Neosyriac Proverbs, which according to Olga Kapelink25,
is in the National Library in Jerusalem (or. 31) in Bedjan’s handwriting from
Chmizer’s legacy and contains among others a list of 150 proverbs in Eastern
Neo-Aramaic.
In 1905 G. Kampffmeyer26 published 108 Proverbs in his Neusyrische Sprich-
wörter im Dialekt von Urmia, translated into German.

II.  Samuel Dinkha and Raman Bitshamoon’s Collection

A)  Proverbs: Quotation from the Bible

Proverbs have a long history in their culture. This means that they could
acquire a pedigree. This aspect was recognised long ago by H. Bohn in his
A Hand-Book of Proverbs27: He wrote:
“A Proverb is usually defined as an instructive sentence or common and pithy
saying, in which more is generally designed than expressed; famous for its pecu-
liarity and elegance, and therefore adopted by the learned as well as the vulgar, by
which it is distinguished from counterfeits, which want such authority”.

The proverbs and proverbial phrases in all languages often have many origins.
The most used sources mentioned in the literature are the Bible, the native lit-
erature and the world literature.
As the most widely read book the Bible served as a very old pool of wisdom
particularly after its translation into different national languages and conse-
quently its distribution.28 It belongs to the active linguistic usage of the Assyrian

22  Albert Socin, Die neuaramäischen Dialekte von Urmia bis Mosul. Texte und Übersetzungen,
Tübingen, 1882, pp. 118-119.
23  Maclean, Grammar, pp. 345-358.
24  Johannes Baensch-Drugulin (ed.), Marksteine aus der Weltliteratur in Originalschriften,
Leipzig, 1902, translated by Maurice Chamizer, pp. 58-60.
25  For this MS see Kapelink, Olga “Compound verbs in New-Armaic”, in: W. Arnold and
H. Bozin (eds.): Sprich doch mit deinen Knechten Aramäisch, wir verstehen es! 60 Beiträge zur
Semitistik, Festschrift für Otto Jastrow zum 60. Geburtstag, Wiesbaden 2002, p. 361f.
26  G. Kampffmeyer, “Neusyrische Sprichwörter im Dialekt von Urmia”, Mitteilungen des
Seminars für orientalische Sprachen, 2. Abt. VIII (1905), pp. 1-24.
27  H. Bohn, A Hand-Book of Proverbs, London, 1855, p. xii.
28  Cf. for example, M. C. Wahl, Das Sprichwort der hebräisch-aramäischen Literatur mit besond.
Berücksicht. des Sprichwortes der neueren Umgangsprachen: Ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden

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 H. Younansardaroud 285

(as well as thousand of humans of many cultures), and even today plays a large
role in the religious as well as in moral value system of many societies. A proverb
is often a quotation from the Bible, e.g.
29
a) (Luk. 10:7; 1. Kor IX:7; 1. Tim. V:18)
The workman is worthy of his meat.
30
b) (Mat. 12:33)
A tree is known by its fruit.
31
c) (Mat. 7:8)
Seek and you will find
32
d) (Mat. 12:34)
The tongue likes to utter when the heart is impressed with joy. What the heart
thinks, the mouth speaks.33

B)  Proverbs: allusion on the Bible

There are also many proverbs, which do not originate directly from the Bible,
but only allude to the Bible, e.g.34
This is an allusion to Mat. 22:14, which reads:

The English form reads as follow: Many are invited, but few are chosen.

The beauty of a house is inside. It means that the house’s beauty is based on
the peace and love within the family. This is an allusion to Ps. 45:13, where ot
os written:

The English form reads as follow: The princess is decked in her chamber
with gold-woven robes.

Parömiologie, Leipzig, 1871; Carl Schulze, Die biblischen Sprichwörter der deutschen Sprache,
(Sprichwörterforschung; 8), Bern [a.o.], 1987 (reprint 1860), introducted and edited by Wolfgang
Mieder.
29  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 189.
30 Ibid., p. 37.
31 Ibid., p. 141.
32 Ibid., p. 239.
33 Ibid., p. 300.
34 Ibid., p. 300.

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 286 Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

C)  Proverbs of ancient origin

The antiquity of some Proverbs used by Assyrian and its persistent is

also remarkable. I would like to mention only two examples from Dinkhas-
Bitshamoon’s collection:
a) The water which is under the straw. It means
35

sneaky, dishonest, cunning.

This proverbial expression has a particularly old origin, since it first appears
according to Michael Cheyt36 in an Akkadian inscription from Mari on the
banks of the Upper Euphrates in modern Syria,37 dating from the first half
of the third millennium BC.
The Akkadian form is: sa-pa-al tibnim mu-ú38
This proverbial expression exists also in following languages:
39
Persian: ,
40
Kurdish: Ava bin kaê  ,
Turkish: saman altından su yürütür 41,
and with a close analogue in Arabic: (A snake under
the straw)42.

The following proverb is also of Mesopotamian origin, in all probability

going back to the Sumerian animal Proverbs, which form an entire genre of
literature in that language.

b) 43
The dog recognizes his owner.
Sumerian: ur-gerx-re lú1-ki-ág-b mu-un-zu2 The dog recognizes a man
who loves him.44

35 Ibid., p. 234.
36  Michael L. Chyet, “A preliminary list of Aramaic loanwords in Kurdish”, in: A. Afsaruddin
and A. H. M. Zahniser (eds.): Humanism, culture and language in the Near East: Studies in honor
of Georg Krotkoff, Winona Lake, 1995, pp. 234ff.
37  See Willem H. Ph. Römer, Frauenbriefe über Religion, Politik und Privatleben in Mari:
Untersuchungen zu G. Dossin, Achives Royales de Mari X (Paris 1967), (Alter Orient und Altes
Testament; 12), Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1971, pp. 21-22, §80.
38 Ibid.
39  See Dehkhoda, Amsâl, vol. 1, p. 7.
40  See Dzhalilov-Dzalilov, Mesele û Met’elokê, p. 71, §180.
41  See Tülbentçi, Türk Atasözleri, p. 325, Nr. 12116.
42  See Michael Feghali, Proverbs et dictions Syro-Libanais, Paris, 1938, p. 724, Nr. 3020.
For the relation of Arabic proverbs to ancient periods see Goitein, “The Origin and Historical
Significance of the Present-Day Arabic Proverbs”, pp. 174ff. and A H. al-Fuadi, “Sumerian
and Modern Iraqi Proverbs: A comparative Study” (in Arabic), Summer 29 (1973), pp. 83-
106.
43  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 213.
44  Gordon, “Sumerian Animal Proverbs and Fables: ‘Collection Five’”, p. 58, Nr. 5.84.

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 H. Younansardaroud 287

c) He became angry like a dog.

Sumerian: ur-gerx2-gisellag3-ra4-gim íb-dam ì-ib-za5 He became angry like
a dog […].45
According to Gordon this proverb was applied to a person who was
exceptionally quick to anger.
I believe that an entire analysis of the available material will prove that the
present-day Modern Assyrian Proverbs and idioms are very close to those
from ancient Mesopotamian.

III)  Proverbs arranged according to subject categories

In the Roman languages there are an extensive collection of proverbial phrases,

which are arranged according to subject categories. This arrangement for exam-
ple is found in Walter Gottschalk’s two volumes of work about Die sprichwört-
lichen Redensarten der französischen Sprache.46 Within neo Aramaic dialects
there are also two important studies done by Segal47 and Yona Sabar 48, which
outline an arrangement for the Neo-Aramaic dialect proverbs of the Jews of
Zakho. Sabars’ article is also a comparative presentation of multilingual prov-
erbs of the Jewish community, with comments on their general linguistic-ethnic
context. I would like to continue now with some quotes of Dinkhas and Bitsha-
moon’s Collection:
Many proverbs or idioms include for example Guests and Hosts as a topic:
At the report about the wolf, the wolf is at
49

the door. In English it sounds: Speak of the devil and the devil shows up.
Some of proverbs refer to practical wisdom, for example:
A short proverb or speech is sweet.
50
51
A herb grows according to its root.
This is comparable with the English proverb: Like father, like son.

45 Ibid., p. 62, Nr. 5.93.

46  Walter Gottschalk, Die sprichwörtlichen Redensarten der französischen Sprache, ein Bei-
trag zur französischen Stilistik, Kultur- und Wesenskunde, 2 vols, Heidelberg, 1930.
47  J. B. Segal, “Neo-Aramaic proverbs of the Jews of Zakho”, Journal of Near Eastern Stud-
ies 14/4 (1955), pp. 251-270
48 Yona Sabar, “Multilingual Proverbs in the Neo-Aramaic Speech of the Jews of Zakho,
Iraqi Kurdistan”, International Journal of Middle East Studies 9 (1978), pp. 215-235.
49  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 81. Cf. also Maclean, Grammar, p. 350, Nr. 48;
Sabar, “Multilingual Proverbs …”, p. 224, Nr. 52 (‘… dog …’).
50  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 249. Cf. also Maclean, Grammar, p. 357, Nr. 113; Socin,
Die neuaramäischen Dialekt, p. 118, Nr. 204, Sabar “Multilingual Proverbs …”, p. 226, Nr. 79.
51  Dinkha-Bitshamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 120. Cf. also Maclean, Grammar, p. 349, Nr. 41.

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 288 Modern Assyrian Proverbs and Idioms

Summary

Modern Assyrian proverbs express their own folk wisdom; they were
selectively incorporated or modified. Many of them are multilingual and even
universal proverbs.
The Assyrian Proverbs Collections particularly Dinkha-Bitschamoon’s Col-
lection, which specifically placed the collection of dialect proverbs in foreground
can be regarded as the richest source of contemporary Assyrian Proverbs and
Idioms. It prevents these proverbs from disappearing or getting lost. Addition-
ally the Dinkha-Bitschamoon’s Collection attempts to provide precise guidance
in each case of use of an idiomatic or proverbial expression. That is why it can
also be regarded as an attempt to avoid one of the deficiencies found in previ-
52
ous dictionaries e.g. . Furthermore, it also shows that the
proverb is dynamic and very much alive. While other forms of narration do not
play the same role in modern society, the proverb by contrast exhibits an uncanny
ability to regenerate itself.

52
  Dinkha-Bitschamoon, Simta d-Matle, p. 366.

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