Russian proverbs originated in
oral history and written texts dating as far back as the 12th century. The
Russian language is replete with many hundreds of
proverb
A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbia ...
s (пословица ) and
saying
A saying is any concisely written or spoken expression that is especially memorable because of its meaning or style. Sayings are categorized as follows:
* Aphorism: a general, observational truth; "a pithy expression of wisdom or truth".
** Adag ...
s (поговорка ).
The
proverbs
A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbia ...
express a universal concept, have a
moral lesson and provide an insight into many aspects of
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
,
culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
, and national
character of the people who created them. By the 17th century, the proverbs were collected and documented. They were studied in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Vladimir Dal
Vladimir Ivanovich Dal ( rus, Влади́мир Ива́нович Даль, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr ɨˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈdalʲ; November 22, 1801 – October 4, 1872) was a noted Russian-language lexicographer, polyglot, Turkologist, and founding me ...
was a famous
lexicographer
Lexicography is the study of lexicons, and is divided into two separate academic disciplines. It is the art of compiling dictionaries.
* Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionaries.
* Theoretica ...
of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
whose collection was published in
Russian language in the late 19th century as ''The Sayings and Bywords of the Russian People,'' featuring more than 30,000 entries. They continue to endure in modern literature and
folklore
Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...
. Evidence of this is seen in the collection of Russian
anti-proverb
An anti-proverb or a perverb is the transformation of a standard proverb for humorous effect. Paremiologist Wolfgang Mieder defines them as "parodied, twisted, or fractured proverbs that reveal humorous or satirical speech play with tradition ...
s collected by Reznikov.
[Reznikov, Andrey. 2009. ''Old Wine in New Bottles. Modern Russian Anti-Proverbs.'' ]Proverbium
''Proverbium: Yearbook of International Proverb Scholarship'' is an academic journal covering paremiology, the study of proverbs. Each volume includes articles on proverbs and proverbial expressions, book reviews, a bibliography of recent prove ...
Supplement Series, Volume 27.
See also
*
List of Russian proverbs (Wikiquote)
*
List of Russian proverbs (Wiktionary)
*
Trust, but verify
Trust, but verify ( rus, links=no, Доверяй, но проверяй, r=Doveryay, no proveryay, p=dəvʲɪˈrʲæj no prəvʲɪˈrʲæj) is a rhyming Russian proverb. The phrase became internationally known in English after Suzanne Massie, an ...
*
Vladimir Dal
Vladimir Ivanovich Dal ( rus, Влади́мир Ива́нович Даль, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr ɨˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈdalʲ; November 22, 1801 – October 4, 1872) was a noted Russian-language lexicographer, polyglot, Turkologist, and founding me ...
References
Bibliography
*Anikin, V. P. ''Russian proverbs and sayings.'' Khudozhestvennaya Literatura, Moscow (1988).
*
Dal, Vladimir I. ''Proverbs of Russian People.'' М.: Russian Book (1993).
*Danko, S. G., et al. "Comparison of the effects of the subjective complexity and verbal creativity on EEG spectral power parameters." ''Human Physiology'' 35.3 (2009): 381-383
link to article*Gibian, George. How Russian Proverbs Present the Russian National Character. ''Russianness: Studies on a Nation’s Identity''. Ed.
Robert L. Belknap. Ann Arbor (1990): 38-43.
*Gluski, Jerzy. ''Proverbs: A Comparative Book of English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, and Russian Proverbs with a Latin Appendix''. Elsevier Science Limited, 1989.
*Guershoon, Andrew. ''Certain aspects of Russian proverbs''. F. Muller ltd., 1941.
*Krylov. C. A. ''Russian Proverbs and Sayings in Russian and English''. US Army Russian Institute, 1973.
*Langna, I. A. ''1200 Russian proverbs''. Philosophical Library, 1960.
*Mertvago, Peter. ''The comparative Russian-English dictionary of Russian proverbs & sayings'': with 5543 entries: 1900 most important proverbs highlighted: English proverb index. Hippocrene Books, 1995.
*Permiakov, Grigoriĭ Lʹvovich. ''From proverb to Folk-tale: Notes on the general theory of cliche''. Nauka, 1979.
*Politis, Vera, Richard Robert Sheldon, and Alan A. Reich, eds. ''Russian Proverbs: 100 Favorites of Professor Nadezhda Timofeevna Koroton.'' Dartmouth Triad Associates, 1998.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russian Proverbs
Proverbs by language