“Dagomba Proverbs”

This is a collection of 1,472 Dagomba (Ghana) proverbs photocopied in A-4 format with transparent plastic cover and comb binding (30,000 Ghanian cedis each). Dagombas, like other ethnic groups in Ghana and Africa, are noted for their frequent use of proverbs in daily speech and social interactions. Proverbs contain the wisdom and wit of the ancestors and elders, their cultural ways and their world view. They are also seen as one way in which God has been revealing himself to the Dagombas since time immemorial.

As stated in the introduction, this is meant to be a first copy to be used in workshops with the aim of discovering which proverbs exemplify or illustrate Biblical teachings and values. This is one of the ways of inculturating the Good News among the Dagombas of Ghana.

Below are four Dagomba Proverbs with Scripture references:  

• “A yi kumdi a nin kpion nagl’ a ti kari la kpakpili bahi ka naan-yi ban n’ a chogim ya.”
  If you boast of your strength, it will be so until the day you chase a tortoise and can’t catch it; then you will realize that you have lost your strength.
  Don’t boast too much, or one day you will be ashamed. Matthew: 26:31-33 and 69-75

                xxiv.            “A yi ti nya bu’ bagli daa ni, yel’ bagli m-be yina.”
If you see a pregnant goat in the market, there are pregnant troubles at home.
Extreme situations call for extreme sacrifice.
God sent his Son to redeem us from sin: John 3:16; Matthew 20:17-19; 1 Samuel 21:4-7

                    xxv.            “A yi zan nintori m-me yili, maligim n-daari li luhira.”
If you use sptittle to build a house, dew will push it down. If you tell a hundred lies, it will take only one truth to prove you wrong. Cheap things do not last. Matthew 7:24-27 and Luke 6:47-49

                xxvi.            “A yi bombo m-bi nya, a daliri biegu m-bi neei.”
If you try without being successful, your lucky day has not yet come. There is a time for everything. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8.
For further information contact Kofi Ron Lange