Scene from Sucevita Orthodox Monastery, Bukovina region, Romania. Photo: Supplied

For generations, Greek proverbs have distilled everyday life, advice and sharp observations about human nature into just a few words.

My mother’s favourite was, “the dressmaker’s childern with no clothes and the shoemaker’s children with no shoes” which is a version of one of the sayings found in this manuscript.

In fact the sayings papou and yiayia used can be traced back to the Byzantine era, and others belong to a proverbial tradition that kept evolving long after.

A new identified manuscript has brought 120 such sayings back into the light, 90 of them previously unknown, and all attributed to the Greek Jesuit scholar Hermodorus Rhegius (1579–1655).

The proverbs were passed down through fellow Jesuit Adrien Parvilliers to a French scholar, Louis Gaudefroy, who copied them out with Latin and French translations and, in places, his own notes on what they meant.

Toon Van Hal and Han Lamers’ article, ‘Ninety new Greek proverbs of Hermodorus Rhegius: edition and textual history’, published in Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies Photo: Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies: Cambridge Press

Here are some of the standouts:

“The man outside the dance knows many songs.” Ὁποῦ ‘ναι ἀπόξω τοῦ χοροῦ, πολλὰ τραγούδια ξεύρει. A gentle dig at the armchair expert — anyone can offer advice from the sidelines when they’re not the one who has to dance.

“Even the gull will come upon a cuttlefish.” Θέλει λάχει καὶ τοῦ γλάρου σεπιά. No run of bad luck lasts forever; even the unluckiest bird eventually stumbles onto a good catch.

“The cicada has sung; the black grapes shine.” Τζιτζίκας ἐλάλησε, μαύρη ῥῶγα ὑάλισε. A proverb straight from the vineyard calendar — when the cicadas start up and the grapes darken, harvest time is near.

“Everything in its season, and the mackerel in August.” Κάθε πρᾶγμα στὸν καιρόν του, καὶ κολοιὸς στὸν αὔγουστον. Timing matters in all things, Mediterranean life very much included.

“What people call beautiful is not beautiful; beautiful is what pleases a person.” Δὲν εἶναι ἐκεῖνο ὄμορφο, ὁπ’ ὄμορφο τὸ λέσι· εἶναι κεῖνο ὄμορφο, ὁποῦ τ’ ἀνθρώπου ἀρέσει. Centuries before “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” became a cliché, this proverb was already saying it.

“The poor man rejoices in his clothing three times: new, old, and newly patched.” Ὁ φτωχὸς τὸ ῥοῦχο του τρεῖς φοραῖς τὸ χαίρεται, καὶ καινούργειο, καὶ παλαιό, καὶ καινουργειομπάλωτο. A reminder of how far one garment had to stretch, and how much pleasure could still be found in it.

“The shoemaker goes barefoot, the tailor in torn clothes.” Τζαγγάρης ἀξυπόλυτος, ῥάφτης παραλυμένος. Those who make a living providing for others often go without themselves, an irony that hasn’t aged a day.

“When God is angry with the ant, he gives it wings and it flies.” Ὅταν ὀργισθῇ ὁ θεὸς τὴν μέρμιγγα, τοῦ δίνει φτερὰ καὶ πετᾷ. Sudden fortune isn’t always a blessing; it can just as easily be the thing that leads to a fall.

“Time and straw ripen pears.” Ὁ καιρός, καὶ τὰ ἄχυρα ῥιμάζουν ταῖς ἀχλάδες. Some things, like pears left to soften on straw, simply cannot be rushed.

“The deeds of the night are seen by the day, and it laughs.” Τῆς νύκτας τὰ καμώματα, τὰ βλέπει ἡ μέρα, καὶ γελᾷ. What feels like a good idea after dark rarely survives the light of morning.

“The rings may be lost, but the fingers remain.” Ἂν τὰ δακτυλίδια ἐπέσαν, τεῖς τὰ δάκτυλα ἀπομείναν. A compact lesson in perspective: losing possessions is not the same as losing everything.

“The wolf may grow old and change its hair, but it does not change its nature.” Ὁ λύκος κἄν ἐγέρασε καὶ ἤλλαξεν τὸ μαλλί του, μηδὲ τὴν γνώμην του ἤλλαξε, μηδὲ τὴν κεφαλήν του. Age changes appearances, not character.

“A raven does not pluck out another raven’s eye.” Κόρακας κοράκου μάτι δὲν εὐγάζει. People of a kind protect one another, for better or worse.

“Be neither too bitter, lest they reject you, nor too sweet, lest they eat you.” Μηδὲ πικρὸς καὶ ῥίξουν σε, μηδὲ γλυκὺς καὶ φά’ σε. Timeless advice on moderation, wrapped in an unforgettable image.

“The tongue has no bones, yet it breaks bones.” Ἡ γλῶσσα κόκκαλα δὲν ἔχει, καὶ κόκκαλα τζακίζει. Words wound far beyond their physical weight.

“When many roosters crow, dawn comes late.” Ὅνταν πολλοὶ πετεινοὶ φωνάζουν, ἀργὰ ξημερόνει. Too many people trying to do the same job can slow everything down — an early version of “too many cooks.”

“He who has been burned by porridge blows on sour milk.” Ὁποῦ ἐκάη στὸν κουρκούτη, τὸ ξυνόγαλον ἐφύσα. Once bitten, twice shy, and sometimes more cautious than the situation really calls for.

Taken together, these sayings offer a portal into the worries of everyday life centuries ago, money, work, hunger, faith, luck, and the endless business of getting along with other people. In a way not much has changed. They’re a reminder of how much wisdom can survive in just a line or two, passed down long enough to still ring true today.

*The full scholarly account can find it in Toon Van Hal and Han Lamers’ article, ‘Ninety new Greek proverbs of Hermodorus Rhegius: edition and textual history’, published in Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies.

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The wisdom your Yiayia never knew she was missing