Bantu Proverbs

Bantu Proverbs carry wisdom from communities shaped by the vast migrations that spread Bantu-speaking peoples across Africa. They prize ubuntu—shared humanity—teaching respect for elders, cooperation, and patience through images of land and kin.

No man can paddle two canoes at the same time. (Bantu Proverb)
A good deed will make a good neighbor. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
A kingdom's strength is in mutual honor. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
A thief does not like to be robbed. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
A dead man does not know where his grave is. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
It is better to have no law than not enforcing it. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
One mouth doesn't taste the beer. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
Only heaven can see the back of a sparrow. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
Patience is the mother of a beautiful child. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
Stroke your dog and he will steal eggs. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The bull should be taken by the horns, a man at his word. (Bantu Proverb)
Work is good provided you do not forget to live. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
You do not teach a giraffe to run. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
You take a bull by the horns and a man by his words. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
A case is not to be decided from one mouth. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
A redeemer of people is a walker with people. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
Cut of the sick part while it is still small. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The egg teaches the chicken how to breed. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The eye never forgets what the heart has seen. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The hunter who always comes home with meat is a thief. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The most stupid chicken always challenges the wildcat. (Bantu Proverb)
The owner of the skin is the one to tan it. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The tortoise stores its wisdom in his shell. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
The wise are as rare as eagles that fly high in the sky. View proverb
Bantu Proverb
They are happy, the free men that have their fathers. View proverb
Bantu Proverb