Guyanese Folk Sayings And Folk Wisdom From the Elders

Standard Image of Wisdom sharing: folks sitting in a circle around an elder who shares stories and sayings 🙂

The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and her tongue speaks justice.” Psalm 37:30

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Greetings from Miss Parris, netizens! As I prepare to travel to Guyana once again, there’s a lot of excitement about a long-overdue family reunion happening during the first week of August. As the title of this blog entry demonstrates, I grow most excited about reconnecting with beloved elders and relatives who are always ready and willing to share stories, advice and precious gems of Guyanese folk sayings and wisdom.

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Below is a list of 10 folk-wisdom-sayings shared by some of my Guyanese relatives as a small sample of the type of dynamic life-skill teachings or “street smarts” that communities in Guyana have exchanged throughout the years. Although these folk sayings may or may not be uniquely rooted in Guyana due to the nature of the trans-atlantic slave-trade patterns (among many other factors), hopefully the wisdom within these words highlights glorious aspects of Guyanese folk-culture (such as the incorporation of nature and animals in many of the sayings) and perhaps at least one of the sayings will be a blessing to you.

Bird that often represents wisdom: The Owl!

Saying 1:

“No matter how bird vex, he can’t vex with tree.”

-Similar western message: honor the people and/or entities that sustain you at all times … Also similar to don’t bite the hand that feeds you

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Saying 2:

“What rain nah full, dew can’t full”

-Similar western message: too little too late is ineffective.

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Saying 3:

“Don’t go to crab dance if you don’t want ya foot get mud”

-Similar Western message: Prevention is the best medicine… stay away from trouble if you want to stay out of trouble

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Saying 4:

“Monkey paint he pickney ’til he spoil ’em”

-similar western message: less is more! Too much of a good thing can ruin everything.

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Saying 5:

“All skin teeth is not laugh”

-Some people are laughing with you and some people are laughing at you…Not everyone who is around you is there for positive reasons.

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Saying 6

“Don’t fly past your nest.”

-Don’t forget where you came from and especially don’t disrespect your elders.

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Saying 7

“Rat does forget but trap don’t forget.”

-Even if you don’t remember all the things you have done in this world (and if you’ve made enemies during your dealings,) you eventually reap what you sow later than you sow… Especially if you are dealing with people who wait for their revenge and hold grudges.

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Saying 8

“The same dog that bring bones does carry bones away.”

-People who engage in gossip often gossip about the same people that they share gossip with.

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Saying 9

“If Christmas is going to be good, you does know from the Eve”

-Always heed warning signs since there is probably writing on the walls for people to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

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Saying 10

“Hard ears pickney does shit small”

-similar western equivalent: disobedience leads to hardship… “Honor your father and mother so that your days may be long”

“Knowledge speaks but wisdom listens” -Jimi Hendrix

What are some of your favorite and most useful wisdom sayings and/or folk teachings?

Post them in the comments section of this blog and/or or e-mail: chantee.parris@gmail.com