Haitian Sayings – Deep Wisdom and Cultural Insight

Dòmi nan men ou, bondye nan zòtèy ou. (Sleep in your hands, God in your breast.)

Bouch pale pa sun ou woule. (A talking mouth doesn’t make a rolling stone.)

Ou pa ka fè on flè fann nan dwòg. (You can’t make flowers bloom in a gutter.)

Si ou vle, ou ka. (If you want to, you can.)

Bèl dan pa janm sousi. (Beautiful teeth never worry.)

Men anpil, chay pa lou. (Many hands make the load light.)

Piti piti zwazo fè niche li. (Little by little, the bird builds its nest.)

Sa bondye bay se li menm ki pa pran tèt. (What God gives is never taken back.)

Mizè pa fè konfyans. (Misery doesn’t inspire confidence.)

Pa gen chay nan menm yon moun. (There is no burden in the hands of a single person.)

Se konbyen youn fède ki fè kras. (It’s not how much you gather, but how much you share.)

Nou pa genyen men sa nou genyen pou nou ban nou. (We may not have much, but what we have, we give.)

Nou pa fè sonje ak soulye. (We don’t make memories with shoes.)

Men kòt ba nou, siman nen ki ba nou. (The side we lower ourselves to is the side we fall on.)

Men vye sousi voli. (But old worries fly away.)

Li pa gen kòb men li gen konpweyansyon. (He doesn’t have money, but he has understanding.)

Se bon dlo pote woch. (Good water carries stones.)

Le pòv se vant. (When you are poor, you are proud.)

Kirye ase pou rasinn. (Too much complaining weakens the roots.)

Mwen pa gen lajan men mwen gen valè. (I may not have money, but I have value.)

Chemen long pa konnen latè. (A long path doesn’t know the earth.)

Sa ou fè pi bon pase sa ou di. (What you do is better than what you say.)

Nou se ti moun nan men Bondye. (We are little children in God’s hands.)

Nou se frè, pa se mòso. (We are brothers, not pieces.)

Men koutremèt se bondye. (But a short stick is God.)

Bak nan pakonpa, se soley sou bèt. (Flattery doesn’t boil a pot, but shines on animals.)

Chen ki ap fè wòf pa mòde. (A dog that barks doesn’t bite.)

Baton ki gen nan li pa trangaje. (A stick that has many in it doesn’t break easily.)

Yon pen ki pa ekri pa janm fini. (A pen that doesn’t write never finishes.)

Pwen se flè, revolisyon se kòl. (Point is flower, revolution is collar.)

Pati danse nan nèg so. (Leaving the dance in the man’s hands.)

Se lamyè ki ka kraze pozon an. (Only light can break the darkness.)

Pèp ki san sa pa fache. (A people without blood is not angry.)

Mwen pa ka wete je mwen nan bouboun mwen. (I can’t take my eyes out of my skull.)

Li pa fini nan djondjon. (It’s not over in the bush.)

Se premye pas ki koute. (It’s the first step that costs.)

L’ap manje zombi, li p’ap mete vant. (He’s eating zombie, he won’t put on a belly.)

Mache kòn sou soley. (Walking with your butt in the sun.)

Piti piti, wazo fè nich li nan tèt moun. (Little by little, the bird builds its nest in people’s heads.)

Li nan fizi moun k’ap kasaje li. (It’s in people’s heads that they’re going to cut it.)

Pati nan bwa mal koupe pa sof la. (Leaving in the woods doesn’t keep you away from the felling committee.)

Igname se manje sa. (Yam is the food of this.)

Dan bwa pa kasaje ren. (Wooden teeth don’t hurt the kidneys.)

Milat se kreyol li pale. (Mulatto speaks Creole.)

Mwen fè yon revizyon sou tonbe. (I made a revision of my downfall.)

Prensipal chanm nan se jazz. (The main room is jazz.)

Mwen ale nan devan solèy leve. (I went to the sunrise in front.)

Fche m’ sou men mwen. (I stick my face on my hands.)

Liv la se pitit legliz la. (The book is the child of the church.)

Jwèt la sou boutèy. (The game is on the bottle.)