Nationality: American
Primary Language: English
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: 02/21/2024

Text:

Better late than never.

Context:

The proverb is a joke between members of the informants family, that they will typically say as they arrive late to events. Their family is notoriously late to family events and other general appointments, and the proverb has become an ironic commentary on their timeliness as they leave the house. The informant does not remember when her family started saying it,

Analysis:

This use of the relatively popular proverb is interesting because it is ironic, joking about the families perpetual lateness, as opposed to a one-off event. This adds further meaning to the proverb, as it evolves and has become a tradition. This proverb typically is used to excuse lateness, citing that showing up at all is good. This is a widely used proverb, as it is an easy way to laugh-off something that is often accidental.