1001 Persian-English Proverbs

Cultural Writing. Middle Eastern Studies. In an improved version of the original and highly successful 1001 PERSIAN-ENGLISH PROVERBS (printed in 1996), compiler and illustrator Simin K. Habibin now offers the Persian in literal translation alongside the English. What results is a delightful and illuminating cultural hodgepodge, running from silly to serious and everywhere in-between. Each of the 1001 proverbs is a Persian-English pair, and thus the very English proverb, "Misfortune never comes singly," is cleverly tied to the Persian, "Oh God! Three mishaps at the same time: a limping donkey. An ugly wife, and a debtor." As Habiban explains, "the many similarities existing between Persian and Western culture as shown by these proverbs bring us to an understanding that regardless of which nation we live in, we are all human and share similar experiences in our lives."