Author Archives: Aidan Bradbury-Aranda

Hoja Nasreddin Afandi

“Being an Uzbek, one of the popular themes in the lore of the area I am from is that the rich are greedy and silly and the poor often teach them a lesson. In that regard, one of the folk stories commonly told is that of Hoja Nasreddin Afandi. To be exact, many stories. This was lore but has been since written down and published a lot, of course, as most folklore. Hoja is a title given for making a hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). Nasreddin is also known as Nasreddin Afandi, or just Afandi, depending on the story being told. Whenever, a story “favorably” depicts Nasreddin as a trickster and shrewd defender of the oppressed, he is either called by his first name Nasreddin or by both his first name and the title, Hoja Nasreddin. However, when the story has him as a butt of a joke, then he goes simply by Afandi. He is so popular in Central Asia, the Middle East, and Northern Africa, that Afandi became a name for a simpleton in Uzbek, Tajiki, and Farsi. It is not unusual to hear people call somebody “Afandi” for being silly and naive.”

“Hoja Nasreddin has inspired countless books and movies. Today, he continues to be an enduring character in the oral tradition of modern Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Egypt, and so on. His exploits fascinate people for the same reasons all over the globe. He is the clever underdog, always managing to humiliate the bumbling authorities and fanatics, who are hell bent on capturing or killing him. What is particularly interesting is that Hoja Nasreddin is explicitly non-violent, and wins time and again on his wits alone. To the sheer delight of audiences, who are sometimes rolling with sidesplitting laughter. Nasreddin is immortalized in several monuments in Bukhara, Moscow, and elsewhere, and a person cannot ignore Nasreddin in their studies of the region.”

(Sent via Email)

Though the informant does not remember any specific stories involving Hoja Nasreddin, she considers him to be a significant part of her upbringing in Uzbekistan, and later in Russia. Nasreddin can be seen to represent the common man – for although he is very wise and sagacious, many of his efforts in the stories that the informant recalls involve him resisting the rich and oppressive through non-violent resistance, trickery, and perseverance. In other words, he is basically the equivalent of a Robin Hood character for the region. Both his character, and the stories he appears in are infinitely relatable, on a variety of levels, given that they are often humorous, but at the same time convey a lesson or moral message. Although Nasreddin is believed to be a historical figure, his true origin is unclear, given the fact that many countries in the area claim him for themselves. This manifests itself in a variety of spellings for his name – Hoja, Hodja, Kodja, Mullah, etc.. – are all the same character. His widespread legacy has made him transcend history and become a legendary figure, a proud part of the national canon of many countries in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

 

More information on Nasreddin can be found in the book:

Hengirmen, Mehmet. Nasreddin Hodja Stories. Ankara: Engin, 1995. Print.

 

“Después del niño ahogado, tapar el poso.”

“Después del niño ahogado, tapar el poso.”

“After the drowned child one must cover the well.”

“Esta expresión se dice cuando ha habido un problema que ya se sabía que podía venir pero nadie hace nada para resolverlo hasta que sucede el problema. De acordarme de la primera vez que lo oí no me puedo acordar, pero se escucha en muchas situaciones, por ejemplo si en la Ciudad de México hay una ley que prohibe que se construyan los edificios más altos de cuatro pisos, y alguien decide construir uno de cinco y se cae durante un terremoto, ya van a saber que no deben de repetir el error otra vez.”

“This expression is used when there has been a problem that was consciously known, but no one bothers to resolve it until the problem actually happens. I do not remember the first time I heard the expression, but it is heard in many situations, for example if in Mexico City there is a law that prohibits the construction of buildings taller than four floors, and someone decides to build one with five floors and it collapses during an earthquake, they will know not to repeat the mistake again.”

My mom, the informant for this proverb, was born and grew up in Mexico, living the first 30 years of her life in Mexico City. As a native Mexican, she knows a lot about the customs and culture of the country. Besides that, she also grew up in a family that, like most Mexican families, uses proverbs very frequently in everyday speech. She therefore learned most of the proverbs that she knows in a household setting, from family members and friends. She remembers most of the proverbs that she heard while growing up given the fact that they were constantly repeated, and also because of their very memorable format, often using rhymes, alliteration, and rhythm to convey their message. Today, many of them are part of her everyday vocabulary.

The fact that the informant does not remember the first time she heard this expression, or from whom she heard it, stems from the fact that this is a very common proverb in Mexican culture. It takes a very literal situation, the death of a child in a well, and turns it into a metaphorical warning, essentially stressing the belief that one learns from mistakes and situations that have gone wrong. The idea of “covering the well” safeguards that the mistake will not be repeated again, and that the person to whom the proverb is addressed will learn from such errors and move on. This proverb acts as a good warning in my opinion, especially since it makes it’s point through such a grim scenario (that of a child drowning in a well).

“El que mucho abarca, poco aprieta.”

“El que mucho abarca, poco aprieta.”

“The one who takes on a lot, rarely focuses.”

“Este es un dicho que se refiere a las personas que quieren hacer mucho, pero no se enfocan en una sola cosa y no hacen bien, entonces quiere decir que la gente que hace demasiadas cosas a la vez pero no se enfoca en una nunca va hacer las cosas bien hechas. Después, em….O sea estos dichos son dichos populares, que los dice la gente normalmente en las calles, y en Mexico siempre la gente dice muchos dichos que se refieren a muchas situaciones, y que son parte de la cultura.”

 “This is a proverb that refers to people who want to do a lot, but don’t focus on a single thing and don’t do well, basically it means that the people who do too many things at once and don’t focus will never do anything well done. Then, em…. Well I mean these proverbs are all popular proverbs, that are normally said by people in the streets, and in Mexico people always say many proverbs that refer to many situations, and that are part of the culture.”

My mom, the informant for this proverb, was born and grew up in Mexico, living the first 30 years of her life in Mexico City. As a native Mexican, she knows a lot about the customs and culture of the country. Besides that, she also grew up in a family that, like most Mexican families, uses proverbs very frequently in everyday speech. She therefore learned most of the proverbs that she knows in a household setting, from family members and friends. She remembers most of the proverbs that she heard while growing up given the fact that they were constantly repeated, and also because of their very memorable format, often using rhymes, alliteration, and rhythm to convey their message. Today, many of them are part of her everyday vocabulary.

The informant’s emphasis on proverbs like this one being part of a common, everyday vocabulary, makes them very relevant to many situations in life. The mentality expressed here, is one common to Mexican work ethic – you take your time on one thing until it turns out well. We see this present in the production of Mexican handicrafts, that, when crafted in a traditional way, are not mass produced, but are made with time and care. Taking on a variety of projects is not only overwhelming and stressful, but it leads to a bad quality result. The sentiment expressed in this proverb can be compared to the message of the proverb in the United States, “quality over quantity”.

“La fortuna de gli audaci.”

“La fortuna de gli audaci.”

 “The fortune of the audacious.”

“This expression refers to people who run small risks to obtain something. For example, a person driving who overtakes in an area where one shouldn’t overtake, but passes four cars, generally says, or someone else in the car says, ‘ah, questa e la fortuna de gli audaci!’.”

My dad, the informant for this saying, was born in London, England, but lived in Italy for 10 years of his life, from the age of 30. Over this period of time, he became fluent in the Italian language, learning many colloquialisms and expressions used in everyday speech. Though he does not speak in Italian as much as he used to, when interacting with friends and/or co-workers who are Italian, he still uses many of these sayings.

The informant first heard this expression while in the company of some Italian friends, who after picking him and my mom up from the airport, were stuck in traffic, and instead of dealing with it, decided to overtake many cars by driving on the shoulder of the road. This saying expresses a philosophy of living on the edge, of cutting corners in a risky way to achieve personal benefit. This conflicts with the sentiment of playing it safe expressed in the English-language proverb, “better to be safe than sorry”, and shows a significant difference in culture, exemplifying a youthful feeling of excitement and unpredictability present in how many Italians act. The idea of attempting to get away with things, is in many ways is central to Italian culture according to my dad, who, as a foreigner, experienced this first hand with many incidents, like getting charged for things more than he was supposed to, and having to deal with many reckless drivers.

“Il sogno nel cassetto.”

“Il sogno nel cassetto.”

“The dream in the drawer.”

“This means that what you wish to do in life, is kept, figuratively, in a drawer, and out of it come the dreams that you intend to turn to reality. For example, a car that you like a lot,  but you don’t have the money to buy, or a vacation that you have never been able to do, but that has always been on your mind, that is referred to as ‘il sogno nel cassetto’.”

My dad, the informant for this saying, was born in London, England, but lived in Italy for 10 years of his life, from the age of 30. Over this period of time, he became fluent in the Italian language, learning many colloquialisms and expressions used in everyday speech. Though he does not speak in Italian as much as he used to, when interacting with friends and/or co-workers who are Italian, he still uses many of these sayings.

The informant learned this expression mainly from Italian TV, where it is very common for interviewers to ask celebrities what their “dream in the drawer” is. However, it was also used by many of his friends and acquaintances. This expression seems to have two slightly different meanings to it. Not only does it apply to goals you have set in your life, like a new car or an expensive vacation, as stated above, but it also has to do with dreams that you haven’t achieved, not because you are financially incapable, but because there has not been time, or the convenience to make them reality. Whatever the dream may be, the fact that it resides in a metaphorical drawer suggests that it is something that is safeguarded, held close, and never forgotten.