Proverb – German

Nationality: Swiss
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Edinburgh, UK
Performance Date: April 01, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: German

German:

“Aller guten Dinge Sind Drei”

My Translation

„All good things come in threes“

My informant said this quote to me in the form of encouragement, providing a non-literal interpretation, which is “Third time’s a charm”. This saying comes as a form of encouragement, and as it has double meaning, can also be used for reassurance when discussing about a good omen they would like to occur. I find this proverb very interesting because it corresponds with Axel Olrik’s Epic Law of common use of the number 3. I find it also interesting that there is never an explanation as to why the number 3 is so ominous but is used very frequently not only in jokes and myths and tales, but also in simple proverbs.