Browse 570 Kalanga proverbs by their first letter. Read the wording and the explanations supplied in the collection.
Browse the collection
Compiled and edited by Ndzimu-unami Emmanuel Moyo. The original collection includes English renderings for some proverbs and Kalanga explanations for others. Source numbers are retained for reference.
25 proverbs under D. Showing 21–25.
Proverb #86
Dzina tjitsha dzina nhu
Literal English rendering
Domestic animals in the company of a tree stump-being are in the company of a human being
English meaning
To have somebody in the care of something however incompetent that person is, it is better than to have no one at all
Dziyila ko bhuzwiwa njiba inolala yakakwakwatila nti nehhwombana
Literal English rendering
Poverty can be asked a dove which does double job over the night sleeps at the same time grapping tree branches with its claws. Never say you are the poorest person on earth because there is somebody somewhere
English meaning
Never say you are the poorest person on earth because there is somebody somewhere who is poorer than you..!!
Optimists quote this proverb to suggest that the troubled situation at hand will inevitably change for the better. (The darkest hour comes before down)
