SICILIAN PROVERBS

Acknowledgements

Giuseppe Pitrè (1841-1916) a practicing doctor of medicine and folklorist, amassed a collection of more than 13,000 Sicilian proverbs. In his four volume work Pitrè accompanied many of the Sicilian proverbs with their approximate equivalent found in other Italian dialects and sometimes other languages as well.

What turned out to be only the first draft of the translation of this collection of Sicilian Proverbs was graciously edited by the illustrious Joseph Bellestri. I've incorporated his original edits to the best of my ability.

Most recently Charlie Giordano, a fellow Arba Sicula member offered to edit the entire online collection. Charlie caught: typographical and spelling errors, punctuation, and grammatical inconsistencies. He also questioned the meaning of some of the proverbs which prompted me to rework some of the translations. I've done my best to transfer all his edits. But of course, Ogn'omu havi lu sò difettu. / No one is perfect. But the end result should be a better experience for you, the reader.

Language translation is an art. As an amateur translator, I've approached the task with a sense of excitement and respect. I'm sure I'll continue to make more than my share of errors, from mere typographical to profound. Should you encounter an error, please click on my name at the bottom of this page to send me an email with the details. It will be very much appreciated.