Category Archives: Folk speech

Haz el bien, sin mirar a quien.

-Spanish proverb

-direct English translation: “Do the right (thing) without looking at who”

-Miguel’s colloquial translation: “..which means do right, without prejudice”

Miguel is a friend I met as freshmen at USC; however, we both call the Bay Area home. He grew up in Richmond, CA and his mom is from Guanajuato, Mexico but moved to Oakland, CA when she was 11. Although Miguel grew up immersed in Bay Area Chican@ culture, he actually didn’t hear this saying that much growing up. 

It is more significant for his mother, who heard it from parents and elder relatives. Findings from brief research online, i.e. a book of 6000 Spanish proverbs that is named after this one and numerous downloadable wallpapers of the phrase, would suggest it’s quite a common proverb, although origins are difficult to establish. 

In addition to stressing the importance of doing the “right” or “good” thing, this proverb commands listeners to do so with and for anyone. Not only does it ask listeners to act without prejudice, it implicitly requests that we are “good” even if someone else is “bad.” Neither prejudice nor bitterness justify maltreatment of people. One’s own judgment doesn’t either; in this sense, the proverb evokes biblical teachings that “only God can judge,” that individuals are in charge of their own fate/salvation/repentance and the actions or inactions of others should not determine/compromise one’s own. 

My eyeballs (are) floating out of my head.

-American English saying

-Taylor-Corrine’s translation: ”Gotta pee bad”

My friend, Taylor-Corrine, is from Seattle, WA. While she identifies as Black, she belongs to a diverse familial heritage characterized by African American, Caribbean, Italian, and Native/Indigenous cultures. Perhaps as a result, it’s not uncommon for the most random and/or niche sayings to slip right out of her mouth like they’re a part of common vocabulary, and for me to, of course, have questions. This occurred one day recently, when we accidentally locked ourselves out of our own bathroom at our house. 

She said, “My eyeballs floating out of my head,” and seemed surprised by my confused look before telling me it means she “gotta pee bad.” Taylor-Corrine grew up hearing her maternal grandmothers say the phrase. She joked about her ignorance regarding the saying’s origin, “Ion know if it was some shit from the Great Depression or some Italian shit but my great grandma n great great grandma said it when I was younger.”

While not much seems to be out there on the phrase based on a quick Google search, I found an Urban Dictionary folk definition for the phrase “my eyeballs are floating,” which means “My bladder is full; I need to pee.” Therefore, it is definitely used outside of Taylor-Corrine’s family. Additionally, a list of “The 16 Funniest Southern Expressions” on Destination Tips includes the phrase, “My back teeth are floating,” with “my eyes are floating” as a less common alternative. 

Perhaps, then, the saying emerged in the American South. However, this is unclear. Nonetheless, even without a direct translation and only context, the imagery evoked makes sense for what is being conveyed: one’s bladder is so full, the liquid has leaked and started filling the rest of the body to the point of causing the eyes to float. 

Aqoon la’aani waa iftiin la’aan.

-Somali Proverb

-Translation: “Without knowledge, there is no light.”

Khalif was born to Somali immigrants in Minneapolis, MN. “My parents told me this all the time,” he said of the proverb, which he believes is quite common among Somalis. The phrase translates in English to “Without knowledge, there is no light.” He grew up hearing it as a reminder to put effort into learning and pursue higher education. 

The proverb serves as somewhat of a cautionary warning. It brings up the widespread but elusive concept of “light” as a metaphorical synonym of, perhaps in this context, goodness, wellness, success, joy. It also implies that without knowledge, one’s life will be, in contrast, dark–messy, ugly, difficult to navigate. Therefore, this Somali proverb is also saying that without knowledge, one cannot see. In that, one cannot make decisions, at least informed ones, that improve his or her life (or the lives of others). 

It evokes the lightbulb imagery associated with ideas. Knowledge lights the way. 

“If the wind changed while I was making a face, it’d stick like that.”

Text: 

“My grandfather told me that if the wind changed while I was making a face, it’d stick like that.”

Context: 

The teller would hear this saying from their paternal grandfather (opa) when they were around eight to ten years old. The teller grew up in Singapore, and they would hear this saying from their grandfather in English. The grandfather grew up in Indonesia, though the teller is unsure if their grandfather learned the saying from there specifically. 

Analysis: 

This particular quote is a variant of a common saying used by parents to warn children from making funny or extreme faces, leveraging a child’s fear of ugliness and perhaps permanence to prevent them from embarrassing either themselves or their parents when in public. The threat of the saying collected here is notably based on the random chance of the wind changing rather than any choice that the child has control over, perhaps in order to instill more fear of and consistency in the threat itself. There is also perhaps a real fear of paralysis that forms some foundation for the saying; I’ve certainly heard from friends in the past that they were afraid of getting a stroke while making a funny face and having their faces paralyzed like that. While a hypothetical and rather extreme scenario, it certainly lines up with the fear of random chance and permanence presented in this saying.

How do you spell “candy” with two letters only?

Text: 

Teller: “The basics of the riddle is very simple. It’s just: how do you spell ‘candy’ with two letters only.”

Another Observer [through text]: “Oh, is it C and Y?”

Me: “Oh, that’s pretty smart.”

Teller: “I… think it’s stupid.”

Context: 

The teller heard this riddle very recently from their father while he was visiting the teller at college. The teller and their father are from Singapore, but they have close family in and connections to the US as well. The riddle was performed in a group call with both voice call and text chat available, hence the involvement of an additional observer in the solving of the riddle.

Analysis: 

The fun and trick of this riddle comes from a simple bending of linguistic rules of English spelling, grammar, and understanding of the alphabet. I included the teller’s impression of the riddle not only because I thought it was funny, but also because it is a very logical response to a riddle that’s based on a logical fallacy. The solution of the riddle requires the solver to accept two contradictory truths: that “C” and “Y” are letters but “and” is not, and that “C,” “Y,” and “and” all equally function as letters used for spelling the word “candy.” In finding the solution, the solver must perceive these two principles as more dynamic, blurry, and transitory. The solution also benefits from a more visual understanding of spelling and language rather than an auditory one, as the visualization of “c and y” is much closer to the word “candy” than it is in speech.