Ethiopian people use a lot of sayings and expressions in daily life which offer advice and even sometimes have hidden meanings.
Proverbs and quotes are a great way to gain some insight into Ethiopian beliefs and ways of thinking.
So I’ve spent hours and hours to find all of these famous Amharic quotes, inspiring Amharic sayings and common Amharic proverbs.
(psst, my favorite is number 26 on the list.)
Table of Contents
Famous Amharic Proverbs & Amharic Sayings In Amharic & English
Here’s a bunch of the most famous Amharic proverbs in Amharic as well as some common Amharic sayings in Amharic & English.
These are used often in day to day life.
- ክፉ ቀን እና ዝግምግምን ጎንበስ ብሎ ማሳለፍ – Let bad days and signs of trouble pass by with a bowed head.
- ቀስ በቀስ እንቁላል በእግሩ ይሄዳል – Little by little the egg will walk.
- ድር ቢያብር አንበሳ ያስር – When webs of a spider join together, they can trap a lion.
- ካለ መናገር ደጅ አዝማችነት ይቀራል – You won’t get promoted without speaking up.
- ስዕል እና ዘመድን ከሩቅ ነው የሚያምረው – Distance makes the heart grow fonder.
- እኔው በገዛ እጄ ብዬ ወረድ ወረድ እመቤቱን ልቤን አደረግኩት ገረድ – By my own free will, I humbled my heart and turned myself into a slave.
This Amharic proverb teaches you to not degrade yourself in front of others too much or they’ll see it as weakness and take advantage of you.
- ስያጌጡ ይመላለጡ – When you beautify yourself, you get bald spots.
This Amharic quote actually means ‘beauty is pain’.
Famous Amharic Proverbs & Amharic Sayings Translated Into English
Below I’ve listed the most famous Ethiopian proverbs and idioms as well as some common Amharic quotes translated into English.
The list includes Amharic quotes about life and Amharic quotes about love.
- Counsel and advise him, if he refuses to listen, then let adversity teach him.
- When one is in love, a mountain top becomes a flat field.
- One keeps traveling on until one returns home; one lives on until one returns to earth.
- It is foolish to start a fire just to see the flames.
- If you offend, ask for forgiveness; if you are offended, forgive.
- Restless feet may lead you into a snake pit.
- One who has not learned to walk cannot climb a ladder.
- Telling a secret to an unworthy person is like carrying grain in a bag with a hole in it.
- To one who does not know, a garden is a forest.
- Where there is no shame, there cannot be any honor.
- Regret, like a tail, comes at the end.
- The fool speaks, while the wise man listens.
- Unless you call out, who will open the door?
- A loose tooth will not rest till it is pulled out.
- A mouse that seeks death will go and sniff a cat’s nose.
- As the wound inflames the finger, so the thought inflames the mind.
- He who knows much does not speak much.
- The small stars always shine while the great sun is often eclipsed.
- Calm seas do not create skillful sailors.
Beautiful Amharic Quotes Translated Into English
Below I’ve listed a range of famous and inspirational Ethiopian Amharic quotes which have been translated into English.
The list also includes common Amharic sayings about life.
- One can not stop sleeping in fear of bad dreams.
- God didn’t bring you this far to leave you.
- One may have two legs, but that does not mean one can climb two trees at the same time.
- A fool bull will look only for the green grass without looking out for the danger of toppling over the edge of the steep valley.
- A sad face is noticeable but not a sad heart.
- If I could see your face, I would not need food.
- One is born, one dies, but the land continues to flourish.
- A home cannot be built for the rainy season that has past.
- While the heart of a fool is in his mouth, the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.
- When the heart is sad, tears will flow.
- What one wishes for is always better than what one has.
- A fool at forty is a fool indeed.
- Do not blame God for creating the tiger, just thank him for not giving it wings.
- There are no better witnesses than your own eyes.
- Do not procrastinate or you will be left in between doing something, having something and being nothing.
- Life has no meaning for one without a home.
- No one can know what the new day will bring.
Famous Amharic Proverbs & Quotes In Amharic
Below I’ve listed the most famous Ethiopian proverbs in Amharic as well as some Ethiopian quotes in Amharic.
If you don’t know how to read Amharic then start by learning the Amharic alphabet.
- ያጣ ለማኝ ተሳድቦ ይሄዳል
- ከዝንጀሮ ቆንጆ ምን ይመራርጡ
- የላጭን ልጅ ቅማል በላት
- ፈረስ ያደርሳል እንጂ አይዋጋም
- መቀመጥ መቆመጥ
- ሲሾም ያልበላ ሲሻር ይቆጨዋል
- ከድጡ ወደ ማጡ
- ሰርገኛ መጣ በርበሬ ቀንጥሱ
- ሆድን በጎመን ቢደልሉት ጉልበት በዳገት ይለግማል
- አዛኝ ቅቤ አንጓች
- ንገረው ንገረው እምቢ ካለ መከራ ይምከረው
- በሽታውን የደበቀ መድሀኒት አይገኝለትም
- ሲሮጡ የታጠቁት ሲሮጡ ይፈታል
- ልጅን ሲወዱ እስከነ ንፍጡ ነው
- አመድ በዱቄት ይስቃል
- ዶሮ ጭራ ጭራ መታረጃዋን ታወጣለች
- ዞሮ ዞሮ ወደቤት ኖሮ ኖሮ ወደ መሬት
- ሰው ጥራ ቢሉት ራሱ መጣ
- ያልጠረጠረ ተመነጠረ
Check out the video below which features a range of famous Amharic quotes and well-known Amharic sayings & Ethiopian proverbs.
Thanks for reading this post on the best Amharic quotes about life, famous Amharic sayings and fascinating Amharic proverbs.
I also included some fun Amharic idioms which have hidden meanings.
These Amharic quotes & sayings give an interesting insight into the Ethiopian beliefs and language.
Related Posts: