These 206 proverbs are classified in alphabetical order in ninkãrɛ.
The ninkãrsɩ (also called Nankana, Frafra or Gʋrenne) often express their conception of life through stories and proverbs. It is thanks to this wisdom that the ancestors managed to educate their children.
With proverbs we enter deeply into the soul of the people, we seize on the spot his impressions, his ideas, his feelings, his rules of life. In proverbs crystallizes, so to speak, the wisdom of a people. They are lessons of experience of the centuries, applied to the various circumstances of practical life, lessons of common sense, words of old men. They invite the audience to beware of appearances and to scrutinize the hidden side of things.
In this application, the proverb itself is written in ninkãrɛ in bold type. Then we give a free translation or a paraphrase, and finally we propose possible interpretations (the meanings of the proverb) without pretending to be exhaustive.
We thank all the ninkãrsɩ who helped us to collect and explain these ninkãrɛ proverbs.