Sayings of Tunisian origin

He, who gives you a rope, tie him with it.

He eats the fruits and insults the farmers.

We praised the bride, and she was found pregnant.

A house without an old man or woman is like a farm without a pit.

They ate our food, and forgot our names.

He ate one fig and he thought the autumn had come.

Hold onto the dog’s tail until he gets you across the river.

Avoiding the drop, he found himself under the gutter.

They asked the mule who his father was.

We will live in no house, but the one in the cemetery.

The Tunisian Republic

Tunisia, is the northernmost country in Africa, covering 165,000 square km (64,000 square miles), Its northernmost point, Ras ben Sakka, is the northernmost point on the African continent. It is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia’s population was estimated to be just under 11 million in 2014. Tunisia’s name is derived from its capital city, Tunis, which is located on Tunisia’s northeast coast.

Arabic is the official language, and Tunisian Arabic, known as Tounsi or Derja, is the national, vernacular variety of Arabic and is used by the public. There is also a small minority of speakers of Berber languages known collectively as Jebbali or Shelha. ((An excerpt from Wikipedia)

More Tunisian Proverbs and Sayings

The multitude is stronger than the king.

The bald woman boasts of her sister’s hair.

Do your duties, then drill into the earth.

The old lady gets dragged along by the river and calls it a fruitful year.

A bad year runs away but a bad advice doesn’t.

When the cow fall; many knives appear.

I am offering dates to his mouth; he points a stick to my eye.

If someone hits you with a stone, hit him with bread; your bread will return to you and his stone will return to him.

A bull went to impregnate a cow, and he came back a fetus.

If the full moon loves you, why worry about the stars?

If the tail of the dog can save me, I don’t care about its stench.

One hundred alcoholics are better than one gambler.

How lovely is the sun after rain, and how lovely is laughter after sorrow.

While we are in our father’s house; folks are asking us to leave.

After I saw what my mother did, I will never trust a widow.

Hit him with a bean, he will break.

If your friend is honey, don’t lick him thoroughly.

Home, sweet home, you are keeping secret my misery.

He hit me and cried, then told on me before I could tell on him ..

Don’t trust the horses if they run away or the whores if they repent.

He who is covered with other people’s clothes is naked.

The only difference between the cucumber and water is the moving of the teeth.

You invite him to your place, and he reveals, to all, your privacy.

They have hosted him for charity; he became a calamity.

Pretend that you are crazy, you will live.

Who came back from the grave and told the story?

If you are ugly, be winsome.

I tell him it’s a bull and he says let’s milk it.

There is no blindness but the blindness of the heart.

One touch by a handicraft master is better than ten by an apprentice.

If there is any profit in partnership, two will share a woman.

Perseverance digs holes in the marble stones.

He is farting but his stomach is empty.

The bystander is a knight.

If my belly is of glass, I will fill it with bread and chicken; if it is a closed cellar, I will fill it with cockroaches.

No one will say, “My father is incontinent.” Everyone will say, “He is a man of advice and wisdom.”

Because he has so many trades, he is unemployed.

He who spends a night with a chicken will cackle in the morning.

A house with a man is better than a house with money.

The anger of a woman is mighty and the devil’s trickery weak.

Get your knowledge from the minds of turtles.

He who wants to be famous will have many a sleepless night.

You feed him for a whole year; he does not offer you a single dinner.

They asked the female cat why her kittens were of different colors; she said she is embarrassed to say no.

Ḥumāt al-Ḥimá “Defenders of the Homeland” is the national anthem of Tunisia.

Tunisia National Anthem ( English Lyrics):

O defenders of the Homeland!
Rally around to the glory of our time!
The blood surges in our veins,
We die for the sake of our land.
Let the heavens roar with thunder
Let thunderbolts rain with fire.
Men and youth of Tunisia,
Rise up for her might and glory.
No place for traitors in Tunisia,
Only for those who defend her!
We live and die loyal to Tunisia,
A life of dignity and a death of glory.
As a nation we inherited
Arms like granite towers.
Holding aloft our proud flag flying,
We boast of it, it boasts of us,
Arms that achieve ambitions and glory,
Sure to realize our hopes,
Inflict defeat on foes,
Offer peace to friends.
When the people will to live,
Destiny must surely respond.
Oppression shall then vanish.
Fetters are certain to break.