# Shetland Folk-Lore/Proverbs and Sayings

PROVERBS AND SAYINGS
PROVERBS AND SAYINGS
HERE are many old witty sayings used in the islands and familiar to every Shetlander. In many instances the wise saws quoted in this chapter belong to the traditions of the remote past, or are of native origin, while in the case of proverbs imported in more recent times, it will be seen that they have suffered a sea-change and acquired a local flavour.
A man whose mind is enlarged by education and the general information derived from books, and who possesses a ​command of language, expresses his ideas in his own words, whereas the illiterate man uses the proverbial expressions which tradition has handed down and daily usage rendered familiar, and he justifies his action or verifies his argument with a proverb.
The following old saws were jotted down by me about 30 years ago, while I was lodging in the house of the late Mr. James Manson, of Scraefield, Unst. He was born about the beginning of the century, had a most retentive memory well stocked with folk-lore, and to him I am indebted for many of the sayings. I also received a list from the late Mr. Robert Jamieson, Sandness, which contained several proverbs that were new to me.
The meaning of many of these old sayings is self evident, while it may be said of others that one must live in their environment in order to understand or appreciate them. Many of them throw considerable ​light on the social life of our ancestors. They show that the Shetlanders were a contented people:
“Better half an egg than a töm doop.” “Better a cauld bite than nae bread.” “Better a moose i' the kale than nae kitchen.”
These all breathe of contentment. It was indeed hard for a mother to set her bairns round a “kitchenless” pot, hence the least seasoning was matter for thankfulness.
“It's a guid day that pits aff the night.”
Here again the same spirit of content is manifest. The old fisherman had toiled all day without success. Night had come and he returns just “with the supper”—nothing for to-morrow; but he comforts himself that the wants of to-night have been met by the toils of to-day.
Perhaps he has been in grips with the baldin (halibut), and fainly hoped to feast on its barr cuts, but just as it came within sight of the boat its last desperate struggle “made up the skoag,” and the fisherman ​is doomed to disappointment; but he comforts himself by saying:
“There's as guid a fish i' the sea as ever wis ta'en.” “The sea bids come again.”
Further:
“Better that ae heart breaks than a' the world winders”—
Better patiently to bear one's own troubles alone, than to publish them abroad as material for gossip.
“When my hat is on, my family is covered.” “Better loose than ill tethered.” “It's a silly hen that canna scrape for hersel'.”
These are expressions of a disappointed lover, or the spinster doomed to single bliss.
“Du'll sole dy socks wi' lesser claith.”
This saying is given as a rebuke to one who aspires beyond her position.
Several of these old sayings show that the Shetlanders were a people accustomed ​to penury, which necessitated the practice of the strictest economy:
“If ye döna hain the breer, da bottom 'ill hain itsel'.”
That is, it's late time to practice economy when the meal barrel is empty, or in the words of another proverb:
“It's better lang little than shön (soon) naithin'.”
“Skeek weel, hae lang."
Skeek signifies to use sparingly, and is similar in meaning to the words hain and haag.
There were no doubt seasons of prolonged scarcity, and when supplies came at last, the appetite sharpened by hunger made greater demands. Hence the proverb:
“Lang want is riae bread hainin'.”
“A body mann fach as they're forn”—
A labourer will work as he's fed. Fach is applied to the cultivation of land that had been cropped with potatoes the ​previous year, and is counted hard work. Forn means to be fed.
The wisdom of limiting one's expenditure to their resources is well expressed in the sayings:
“Bake as ye're bodin.” “Cut your claes accordin' to your claith.” “Measure your green accordin' to your gray.”
The mistress of the house was looked upon as the maet-midder, and hungry bairns did not consider her exhausted larder, and often cried for a kröl when the mael-pock was empty. Even the head of the house forgot the very limited resources of his better-half. Hence the following old sayings:
“A hungry man is an angry man.” “Hungry dogs never bark weel.” “Hungry bairns greet sair.” “It's a braw wife that brings butt what's no ben.” “The thing can sair dee an' me, that canna sair twa or three.” “They that gi'e me [a] little wid see me livin'.”
In olden times the people were largely ​dependent for food on the milk of their cows and the flesh of their sheep, and he who possessed a number of these useful animals was a man of wealth among his less fortunate neighbours. Hence:
“The pör man's coo never calves oot o' time.” “The raem (crean) o' ae coo's milk is thin.” “The coo milks frae the head” (as she's fed). “The pör man's sheep are short tailed"” (few). “The pör man's kye are shön kyanded.”
The following convey the same meaning as the well-known saying, “Better endure those ills we have, than fly to others that we know not of”:
“Better rue sit than rue flit.” “Every gait haes mire at the end o' it.” “Better the ill kent than the guid unkent.”
“When the wirm moves it's wise ta flit”—
We should be guided by reason. This old saying has reference to the habit observable in Shetland sheep that have access to the seashore from their pasture. They are known to start for the coast at ebb tide to feed on seaweed, and they are ​said to know the ever-varying time of low water by the movement of a worm or parasite in the fore feet.
“It's dear coft hinney that's sucked oot o' the t'orn (thorn)”
has reference to the difficulty of obtaining a livelihood from the unproductive soil.
“What winna wash, winna wring”
is rather difficult to explain. It conveys the idea that it is vain to strive against overmastering circumstances.
“The wind aye blaws i' da pör man's face.” “The pör man's lot is a leeward tide.”
These are very expressive of the struggle against adverse circumstances.
“The pap milk 'ill need ta be oot o' dy nose”—
You will be required to act the man, and he who possesses a manly heart will say:
“I'm no been fed on a steb-midder's kröl.”
“A yield soo wis never guid wi' grices”—
A bantering expression having reference ​to step-mothers or old maids that have charge of children.
“Need mak's a naked man rin.” “Need mak's a man a craft.”
These are intelligently explained by the popular saying, “Necessity is the mother of invention.”
“The fire burns wbaar it's bigged”—
They who undertake the management of affairs that belong to other people, may make up their minds to have an extra share of trouble.
“Better to wile the haand oot o' the wolf's mouth than tear it oot.” “Wiles help weak folk.” “Seldom comes ae ill its lane.” “Soon is a guid hoose skailed.” “Soon is a guid hoose pu'd doon.” “Broken pots in a' pairts.” “Oot o' the fire and into the embers.”
All these proverbial expressions are self-explanatory.
A number of the proverbs used by our ​forefathers are characteristic of a people who were helpful, obliging, and kind-hearted—borrowing from and lending to each other, In those days the useful inplements that minister to the comfort and convenience of every-day life were few and of a rude sort, and these only possessed by the more fortunate. Hence:
“Borrow and lend helps mony a man.” “Gif-gaf mak's guid friends.” “The weel-willed man is the beggar's bridder”—
He who supplies all seekers will soon exhaust his own resources.
The duty of taking care of borrowed articles is taught in the saying :
“Aye let a len come lauchin' hame.”
“Tiggers soodna be tarrowers.”
Tig means to beg, and tarrow signifies to slight or refuse. Hence persons that beg should never be fastidious. Similar to the popular saying:
“It's ill ta look a gift horse i' the mooth.”
“He that tak's what he haes never wants.”
This refers to the person that dislikes to borrow, who, rather than ask for his neighbour's hammer, will drive his nail with the crook or even a stone.
Often the man most willing to help lacked the power or the means to do so, and this is very comprehensively expressed in the following proverb:
“The riven sleeve keeps the haand back.”
Again:
“They that hae a riven sleeve mann hadd their tongue.”
This has a different meaning. The “riven sleeve” here refers to something one would hide, as a fault; hence one must not be censorious of the shortcomings of others who have similar failings.
“It's ill ta gi'e a naked man claes.” “The spillin' haand never wants.” “Better a timmer cap o' my ain, than a siller cup that's borrowed.” “A man may live by a' his kin, but by his neighbour he canna win.”
reference to the habit of borrowing and lending.
Here are a few proverbial expressions that very aptly set forth the law of heredity and natural tendency:
“An ill röt never sprang a guid branch.” “It's ill ta get oot o' the flesh what's bred i' the bane.” “Water 'ill be whaar water haes been.” “Still water haes the warst wirm.” “Still water haes maist mud.” “The aald coo seeks her ain baand.”
The power of example and habit are illustrated in the following:
“The aald cock craws an' the young ene learns.” “He that gets in his finger 'ill shön get in his haand.”
The universal truth that whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap, is very curtly expressed in four syllables—“Sel' dö, sel' hae”; and the dear-bought knowledge acquired in the school of experience is set forth in the adage:
“Skaed (scathe) never made a man rich, but it should mak' 'im wise.”
Here again are a few proverbs having reference to the habits and upbringing of children:
“Hae boy, rin boy, mak's a guid boy”—
Give a boy food and clothing, and keep him from idleness, and he will grow up to be useful.
“Mony a pelled röl has come to be a guid horse”—
An unpromising youth may become a good man.
“Brunt bairns dread the fire.” “Bairns greet nae langer than they get their will.” “Bairns and föls spaek the truth.” “A close tongue mak's a wise head.” “It's ill ta wint bairns wi' bread, but waar ta wint them aff o' it.” “A short man gets a short faa.” “If bairns grew as they greet, they'd shön be grit.” “Ramished bairns are ill ta please.” “They can dö ill that canna dö guid.” “Tarrowin' bairns are never fat.”
Hence a child refusing to eat because he has “ta'en the dorts,” or is sulky and peevish, is not likely to grow fat, and is best cured by being subjected to a spell of ​hunger, for “the mair he tarrows the less he gets.”
The following seem to have reference to the other end of life:
“Aald folk are twice bairns, an' hinmost warst ava.” “Better late to learn than never to dö weel.” “Better late to mend than never to dö grace.”
Here are a few old expressions that teach the importance of perseverance and industry:
“He that lives on hoop (hope) 'ill die fastin'.” “Wissin' an' waddin' are pör hoose haddin'.” “Glowerin' i' the lum never filled the pot.”
These all teach the well-known truth that perseverance is the mother of good luck, and that the man who endeavours has the best chance to succeed. Hence—
“The gaengin' fit aye gets somethin', if it wis bit a broken tae.”
The following proverb shows that our ancestors did not always rise above the self-interest so common to human nature :
“Everyene bigs the coal best aboot his ain brönie.”
The wisdom of counting the cost and completing what one has begun is taught in the proverb:
“It's ill to eat the coo an' wirry on the tail.”
“Dö weel bids come again”—
Faithful work secures confidence.
“Lay weel up, tak' weel doon”
teaches the orderly habit of having a place for everything and everything in its place.
“Shör bind, shor find”
is very commonly used. The following story will illustrate its application. In the days of the press-gang there lived in Fetlar a man known as Billy Brown. He was of great physical strength and very fleet of foot. Several attempts had been made take him, but without success. One misty August night the cutter with the press-gang on board lay becalmed in the Wick o' Grötin'. A picked crew was sent off with instructions to land in Moosie Gjo o' Straand, and proceed to Billy's ​house under cover of the fog to capture and bring him on board. These instructions were carried out with all possible caution, and the press-gang reached Billy's house at an hour when he and his family were supposed to be asleep. Billy, however, was on the alert, and as his would-be captors entered the butt door, he sprang out the ben chimney, gaining the yard behind the house at a single bound. But just as he crossed the stiggie (stile), he was seized by one of the press-gang who had been left outside on watch. Turning on the man, he seized him with an overmastering grip and quickly tied his hands behind his back with a lamb's tether he happened to have in his pocket. The poor, crestfallen official pleaded to be tied more gently, but Billy's only reply was: “Ha, bridder! he that shör bin's, shör fin's, an 'lauchs whin he lowses.”
The following proverbs show that a
“Black is the stane that a' man spits on.” “Never may the wal (well) be empty that a'body thinks fu'." “He that gets the name o' early risin', can lie as lang as he laeks.”
The following sayings are more difficult to classify :
“Everyene röses the förd as he fin's it.” “Everyene röses the gyurd as he gets it.”
Röse means to praise; förd signifies a find, something to be carried away; and gyurd is a gift or reward. Hence the meaning conveyed by these expressions is that everyone speak of things as they find them.
“Show me the calf, but no the cog.”
This expression is used as a reply to a boastful braggart.
{{fine block|{{center block| <poem>“It's ill to break a strae and look at baith its ends.” “Hairy butter 'ill do for siddie bread.” “Better to wear out than rust out.” “Better to hae the finger aff than aye blödin'.” “Beauty is but skin deep.” “Nane sae deaf as they that winna hear.” “Boil stanes in butter an' the brö 'ill be guid.” ​“They that buy beef, buy banes.'” “Every cock is pertest on his ain midden head.” “The soo dreams as shö wid (would).”</poem>}}}}
The last is used banteringly to persons who strongly advocate their own interests.
“The drukken man aye haes the drukken penny.”
“Ill news is like a fitless heathercow”—
Evil tidings travel fast, like a tuft of dry heather before the wind.
“Nae news is guid news”
is the expression of an anxious wife or sister awaiting the return of an absent breadwinner. Another old saying has it:
“There's hope frae the door, but nane frae the grave.”
“There's nae lee behint a lang-backed sea.”
This is a fisherman's proverb, and means that the rolling waves afford no shelter from the storm.
{{fine block|{{center block| <poem>“Ye may gaeng farther an' fare warse.” “They that hae mael an' a tree (stick), can mak' gruel (porridge) i' the sea.” “They that live langest 'ill see farthest.” ​“Far-come fools (birds) hae fine feathers”</poem>}}}}
teaches that strangers, however fair to appearance, are not to be taken into confidence until we know somewhat of their character.
“Föls (foolish persons) soodna see half-döne wark.” “Föls soodna hae shappin' sticks.” “Föls are better to be flattered than fought.”
It was customary in Shetland for sons to marry and take their wives into their father's house, and often two or even three families might be found under one roof. But it generally happened that such families did not live in that harmony which ought to pervade the domestic circle, and here are a few old sayings having reference to this condition of things:
{{fine block|{{center block|<poem> “Freends 'gree best at a distance." “Freends 'gree best wi' a knowe atween them." “There's nae boose grit enough for twa guidwives." “Twa wives in ae hoose are shör ta live laek cat an' moose." “See your neighbours every day, an' your freends on Yule day." ​“It's ill ta drook a laughin' guest.”</poem>}}}}
A brand standing by itself in the fire was called a guest; a smoking brand betokened an unwelcome guest, while a bright brand meant a friend. The coming of the unwelcome guest might be prevented by pouring water on the brand, but care was needed lest the act should bring misfortune on a friend, who might fall into a mire or burn.
“Glig (quick) is the guest's ee.” “They can tell a tale that canna bear a burden” —(refers to children). “It's a pert beggar that goes by ae door.” “Everyday vitchers (visitors) are tiresome guests.”
A greedy, grasping, overreaching nature is referred to in the following:
“Guid is laithe (weary) o' the greedy man.” “Gi'e an inch and tak' an ell,” “The mair we hae, the mair we want.” “Du wid skin a midge for her tallow.” “Du wid' gaeng atween the lempit an' the stane.”
{{fine block|{{center block|<poem> “The glyed (squinting) gunner never made a fat pot.” “He thrives best that never sees his laird's reek.” ​“He that winna when he can, sanna when he may.” “He that's first at the hill sits whaar he will.” “He that gaengs unbidden sits unsaired.” “Justice never köst (threw) his rider.” “It's ill to drive a willin' horse.” “It's no ill döne a man döes to himsel'.” “It's no an ill straik a dog gets wi' a bane.” “Open doors, dogs gaeng ben.” “The deil is aye kind to his ain.” “The fat piece is shön cutted.” “Seldom lies the best piece till hinmost.” “They that come last must tak' what's left.” “There's mony a change in a simmer dim, lat alane in a winter night.” “They spo (prophesy) weel that ken.”</poem>}}}}
“They sail fast that sit at hame”—
They that anxiously wait for the fisherman's return do not take into account the numerous causes for his delay.
“Let be for let be.”
This saying or an equivalent will doubtless be found wherever there is a language. The Shetland version runs thus: “Lat be for lat be, as Robbie Glen said to the otter.” Now, who Robbie Glen was I am not able to say. I have heard that he ​belonged to Delting, but there is no doubt he was a real person. Like most Shetland crofters, he owned a number of sheep, and as was his custom, he went out one morning to look for some that were straying, As he trudges over the snow-clad hills, what does he spy but the bröd o' dratsie (the footmarks or trail of an otter). Over hill and glen with eager step he follows the bröd until its end at the entrance to a yarff (hole in the moor) near the side of a burn. The hadd is too narrow to allow Robbie to enter and beard the otter in his den. He must dislodge him, and this is done by setting fire to a bundle of dry heather placed in the mouth of the yarff The smoke entering the recess is very offensive to the amphibious creature, and he hastens to escape; but Robbie is on the alert, and throws himself on the poor beast. The struggle is short and severe. The poor otter is stunned with repeated blows and laid aside as dead, while Robbie has received a bite in the left thumb. A ​few hairs are pulled from the otter's tail and applied to Robbie's wounded member, and slinging his prey by the tail over his shoulder, he marches homeward, well pleased with his success. Now, it appears that the otter had not been dead as was supposed, for all at once he seizes Robbie's hip with a death-grip. Robbie tugs and pulls, but all in vain; and at last, goaded to desperation with pain, he runs to an overhanging brae, against which he places his back, pressing with all his might, while he exclaims: “Noo, bridder, lat be for lat be.”
I said that Robbie took some hair from the otter's tail and applied to his finger. It was believed that the best antidote against the effects of the bite of a dog or otter was a hair from the animal's tail. Hence the saying:
“Tak a hair o' the tek (dog) that bett dee.”
“It's ill to follow a bröd (spoor) ipo' flecked ground”—
When the snow is in patches, as is the ​case during thaw, it is difficult to trace footprints.
“Ye're a' ae swine's spik (fat)”—
You are all one family, akin to the Scottish expression, " Ye're a' ae 'oo."
“Du only needs a hair ta mak a tether o'”
is applied to one given to exaggeration.
“It's ill ta sit inonder drap, lat alane wi' underwatter”—
It is uncomfortable when the roof drops, but worse when the foundations let in water. Hence, it's hard to endure two evils. Another old saying shows that such is often the lot of man, for
“Seldom comes ae ill withoot a twin.”
“Ye'll no get blöd oot o' a stane”—
Akin to “It's ill to get breeks aff o' a Hielanman.”
“Auld springs bring nae price.”
Here springs refer to music, and the inference is that one gets tired of what they
“Du dösna bite sae sair as du girns”
refers to one who, under a rough exterior, has a kindly heart.
“They're wilt that wales”
has reference to the difficulty often experienced in choosing among many things.
“It's a willin' will that leads a man to the lady's hoose.”
Will signifies to lose one's way as in a fog, and when a man arrives at the house of his sweetheart, pretending he has wilt (lost his way), it is understood to be a willing accident. Of lovers they say:
“They hae mony a errand i da Ha' that bids the lady guid-day.”
“There's mair i' dy sheeks as i' dy breeks”
is applied to any braggart who pretends to do what he cannot accomplish.
“There's mony a brave lad on the head o' a dead fish.”
This saying doubtless had its origin in connection with whale hunting, and is ​applicable to one who shows off his bravery when the danger is past.
The following proverbs I have not been able to classify:
“There's aye watter whaar the staig smorcs.” “Cleanliness is nae pride, an' dirt is nae mournin'.” “Decency is a debt, but Gudeliness a duty.” “It's ill for the rake to come after the besom.” “It's pör times when the dog licks the cat's nose for breakfast.” “It's guid swimmin' when others hold up the head.” “It's a silly hog that canna carry his ain fleece.” “It's little wirt that's no wirt the askin' o'.” “Tanks is pör pay, but it's better than naethin'.” “An ill race is soon run.” “They that meanly sit richly warm.” “The pinched haand haes a caald heart.” “It's a dirty fool (bird) that files its ain nest.” “Better ta keep weel than mak' weel.” “He lauchs in his sleeve that haes the inplay.” “He'll feel whaar his liver lies that andows wi' leeward tide.” “Por flaichs (fleas) bite sair.” “A fat Yule mak's pör Fastern E'en.” “They that gae wi' the ska 'ill get wi' the scabbart.” “They like ill the face that picks aff the nose.” “A guid paet year wis never a ill maet year.”
“I'll no wirry upo' kliers”
means “I'll speak my mind freely”; and of slanderers it is said:
“Ye may lock afore a haand t'ief, bit no afore a tongue t'ief.”
“The mair dirt the mair luck”
has reference to a fisherman's superstition that it is unlucky to wash out his boat during the fishing season.
“It's guid ta hae a freend, an' no pluck oot his een”—
One should be careful not to make frequent and excessive demands on а generous friend.
“If ye döna tak' gaengers, riders may gae by.”
This was the reply of a young lady whose friends objected to her marriage with one whom they considered below her station in life.
“The ill-vicked coo haes short horns”—
Persons of a tyrannical disposition are
“Whaar there's tuss there's buss."
Tuss and tuk are old Shetland expressions used to denote broken parts or refuse of hay, straw, etc. Buss is bedding for an animal, and is always applied to material used by a bird for building its nest; and the inference of the proverb is that one having numerous things passing through his hands is likely to succeed in “feathering his nest.”
“Mony a corp gaengs ta the kirkyard, bit few come frae it.”
This is used when the unexpected happens.
“Stramp upo' the snail, an' shö'll stick oot her horns”—
Akin to “The worm will turn when trod upon.” “Provocation is enough to make a wise man mad.”
“The stane that lies no i' your gaet, breaks no your taes”
refers to the folly of meddling with matters
“Shö (shoe) brö is warm”
is identical with
“Better ill shod than barefitted.” “Better a wet mitten than a caald haand.”
“The hoose draps söt (soot)”—
A phrase used as a hint to be cautious in speaking in the hearing of talebearers or children,
“Better what's been than what'll never be.”
Two old cronies have met. They knew each other once, though they have long been parted. They wish to renew their friendship over a glass. They drink each other's health in such terms as—“Here's ta dee,” “It's better what's been than what'll never be.”
“The priest preaches for his ain profit”
is a proverb of general application. The clergy in Shetland have never suffered from the disadvantage of being exalted into a position placing them beyond the reach of criticism, and the patriotic Shetlander says when he sums up the ​ages the islands have derived from being severed from Norway:
“A' the guid we ever got frae Scotland wis dear mael an' greedy ministers.”
An old, forgotten custom is commemorated in the following proverb:
“Ye'll no forget da stane whaar ye got a sair bane.”
This refers to the custom of riding the scattald marches, on which occasion a boy got a flogging at each march stone to stimulate his memory.
The last of these old saws I will quote is one I heard many years ago from my friend, Mr. James S. Angus. It survives in the old Norse tongue, and is almost as old-fashioned in sentiment as it is in language, but it breathes the true Old Norse spirit and is full of the wisdom of our forefathers :
“Gött a taka gamla manna ro.”
Or, as Dr. Jakobsen has rendered it:
“It is good to take old men's advice.”