View Full Version : Tagalog Proverbs


vita32
March 03, 2011, 02:57 AM
Sinisimulan ko ang torsidong ito upang maala'la ang mga Kasabihang Tagalog.
(I'm starting this thread in order to recall Tagalog Proverbs):

Ang magtanim ng hangin ay bagyo ang aanihin.
(Lliteral translation: He who sows wind will reap a storm.)
(Equivalent English Idiom: You reap what you sow.)

Kung ano ang tugtug ay siya ang sayaw.
(Literal translation: Whatever the music, so is the dance.)
(Equivalent English Idiom:?)

laepelba
March 03, 2011, 05:29 AM
Kung ano ang tugtug ay siya ang sayaw.
(Literal translation: Whatever the music, so is the dance.)
(Equivalent English Idiom:?)

In what context would you say this? It almost sounds like the same intention as "you reap what you sow"...

JPablo
March 03, 2011, 11:49 AM
In Spanish, the proverb "Quien siembra vientos, recoge tempestades" is a very well known one and used in Spain, at least. (Not sure if the Spaniards gave it to Tagalog or if it is the other way around.)

"Si esa es la canción, ese es el baile" would be the literal translation of the second one... (don't remember having heard that one in Spanish, but it would be understood literally...)

It reminds me "Amor con amor se paga" or "De hombres bien nacidos es el ser agradecido" "Quien mal anda, mal acaba", which may be more or less related in concept and expression to these.

Lao-Tse in his Tao-Te-Ching also has (only read one or two Spanish versions) "Quien desconfía obtiene desconfianza".

(I take there are many sayings that tend to indicate that what you "out-flow" is what you will get back as "in-flow".)

And that again reminds me the non-religious moral code, The Way To Happiness, (paraphrasing the Spanish version)
"Intenta tratar a los demás como te gustaría que ellos te tratasen a ti"
"No le hagas a los demás, lo que no te gustaría que ellos te hiciesen a ti".

(Not sure if "The Way to Happiness" is translated into Tagalog...) :)

vita32
March 03, 2011, 02:51 PM
In what context would you say this? It almost sounds like the same intention as "you reap what you sow"...


@ Laepelba, the meaning of this Tagalog proverb is about making appropriate action to any given situation or how to get along in a given social situation. It seems that the closest English proverb,that I can think of is (Biblical), "When you're in Rome, do what the Romans do." or "Go with the flow".

In Spanish, the proverb "Quien siembra vientos, recoge tempestades" is a very well known one and used in Spain, at least. (Not sure if the Spaniards gave it to Tagalog or if it is the other way around.)

@JPablo, The above proverb is Biblical in origin, therefore, I would deduce that it came about through the influence of Spain, since Roman Catholicism was brought by the Spaniards to the archipelago.

"Si esa es la canción, ese es el baile" would be the literal translation of the second one... (don't remember having heard that one in Spanish, but it would be understood literally...)

It reminds me "Amor con amor se paga" or "De hombres bien nacidos es el ser agradecido" "Quien mal anda, mal acaba", which may be more or less related in concept and expression to these.

Lao-Tse in his Tao-Te-Ching also has (only read one or two Spanish versions) "Quien desconfía obtiene desconfianza".

(I take there are many sayings that tend to indicate that what you "out-flow" is what you will get back as "in-flow".)

And that again reminds me the non-religious moral code, The Way To Happiness, (paraphrasing the Spanish version)
"Intenta tratar a los demás como te gustaría que ellos te tratasen a ti"
"No le hagas a los demás, lo que no te gustaría que ellos te hiciesen a ti".

(Not sure if "The Way to Happiness" is translated into Tagalog...) :)

"Do unto others as you would others do unto you", also a Biblical teaching.

I also remember another American saying, that has similar meaning. (it may only be in the Southern part of the U.S.) "What goes around, comes around."

I have not read much about the teaching of Lao Tse but I suspect that some of its precepts are somewhat similar to the Christian teachings.

I'm not aware that there is a Tagalog translation of "The Way to Happiness".:)It must be interesting to read. I only read sample of it on the web.:)

laepelba
March 03, 2011, 06:19 PM
@ Laepelba, the meaning of this Tagalog proverb is about making appropriate action to any given situation or how to get along in a given social situation. It seems that the closest English proverb,that I can think of is (Biblical), "When you're in Rome, do what the Romans do." or "Go with the flow".

Well, that's not Biblical, but it's definitely something that is very, very commonly said.....

sosia
March 04, 2011, 08:19 AM
Sinisimulan ko ang torsidong ito upang maala'la ang mga Kasabihang Tagalog.
-->He who sows wind will reap a storm --> Quien siembra vientos, recoge tempesatades
(
Kung ano ang tugtug ay siya ang sayaw. --> Whatever the music, so is the dance. --> hay que seguir el ritmo marcado???
What goes around, comes around." ---> "lo que va, vuelve" (similar "cuanto más alto subes, más alta será la caída")

Saludos :D

"you reap what you sow"...

Apalánter
March 08, 2011, 11:47 PM
Sinisimulan ko ang torsidong ito upang maala'la ang mga Kasabihang Tagalog.
(I'm starting this thread in order to recall Tagalog Proverbs):

Ang magtanim ng hangin ay bagyo ang aanihin.
(Lliteral translation: He who sows wind will reap a storm.)
(Equivalent English Idiom: You reap what you sow.)

Very interesting Vita32. :) I can't even think of an idiom as the one you've written down up there!^^^:duh:

vita32
March 09, 2011, 07:41 PM
Very interesting Vita32. :) I can't even think of an idiom as the one you've written down up there!^^^:duh:

Ang mga ito lang ang naisipan ko. Ang dami ko nang nakalimutan hehe. Sige na, subukan mong maala-ala. Marami pa sigurong nakatagong kasabihan sa isip mo na 'di mo lang narinig o nagamit sa matagal na panahon.:)

(These are the only ones I thought of. I have forgotten a lot:). Go ahead, try to remember. Perhaps there are lots of hidden proverbs in your mind which you have not heard or used in a long time.):)

Well, that's not Biblical, but it's definitely something that is very, very commonly said.....

Thanks for correcting my error about the saying "When in Rome....." I always believed it was in the Bible because I've heard it all my life to be so. Now I know better. Some internet sources say that this saying is originated by St. Ambrose.:):rose:

gabrieldemanila
April 10, 2011, 10:39 PM
I love this one:

Tagalog: "Ang hindi marunong tumingin sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan."
English Literal Translation: "He who doesn't look back can't get to where he is going."

I think it can also be translated as the popular phrase: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”.

irmamar
April 11, 2011, 12:35 AM
I love this one:

Tagalog: "Ang hindi marunong tumingin sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan."
English Literal Translation: "He who doesn't look back can't get to where he is going."

I think it can also be translated as the popular phrase: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”.

Something similar is said here: "Quien olvida su historia está condenado a repetirla". In a quick search I've seen that this sentence was written by Jorge Agustín de Santayana (in short, he had a lot of names and surnames :thinking: ).

But the sentence is true. :)

vita32
May 08, 2012, 02:29 PM
Something similar is said here: "Quien olvida su historia está condenado a repetirla". In a quick search I've seen that this sentence was written by Jorge Agustín de Santayana (in short, he had a lot of names and surnames :thinking: ).

But the sentence is true. :)

I love this one:

Tagalog: "Ang hindi marunong tumingin sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makararating sa paroroonan."
English Literal Translation: "He who doesn't look back can't get to where he is going."

I think it can also be translated as the popular phrase: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”.

As I remember from my Elementary School education in the Philippines, the above tagalog proverb has a different meaning, somehow the "look back" part is interpreted in Tagalog to mean "to express gratitude" to those who helped the person get started in life, i.e. parents. Hence the proverb is about gratitude instead of learning from the past.

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