Proverbs are truths that link one generation to another. They have been passed down through millennia to provide advice about how to live life. Every country has a vast archive of proverbs that have been handed down orally from generation to generation. The very name “proverb” indicates that they originated “before” (Latin, pro) the written “word” (Latin, verbum). Ever since our ancestors settled down and started to farm the soil, proverbs have been used to communicate knowledge. Many proverbs about soils are available globally, but no effort has been made within the soil science community to compile and integrate them into a comprehensive book.

Therefore, the International Union of Soil Sciences has published this book on soil proverbs worldwide. The objective of the book is to compile such soil proverbs and, through them, share insights about philosophy, culture, and life in each country, as they relate to soils. The book features 32 chapters from 29 different countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania.

The authors of the individual chapters provide soil proverbs in both English and their native language. Chapters are illustrated with pictures related to the respective proverbs. Some themes are common, such as the need to sustain the soil to sustain humanity, while other themes are particular to a country due to its geography and climate, such as “The peas may be sown when the first swallows come” (Russia) or “If you want to store wheat, plow lowland areas” (Tunisia).
The book addresses both soil scientists and the general public. Readers will see the diversity of proverbs from the different countries, but each one is written in its own beautiful language, and that humankind is united by its dependence on soils, the veritable foundation of their existence.

The proverbs will provide soil wisdom from many countries and show how we all are connected through the soil.

The book under review is a collection of over 600 proverbs on soil, compiled by soil scientists. This review is written by a proverb scholar who makes compost for his garden, so I have some appreciation for both the soil and proverb aspects of this book. It is wonderful to see practical people recognize the value and beauty of proverbs, as well as their application to real world problems. We know that proverbs usually mention the most com- mon animals and objects. This book is about proverbs that touch on something that is universal and basic: soil. The collection con- sists of proverbs from 30 countries, with each national chapter compiled by soil scientists from that country (though the Irish team included the noted paremiologist Fionnuala Carson Williams). For some of the articles, proverbs from plural languages are included, e.g. India. All of the proverbs are given in their own script, with most transliterated, enabling readers to see rhyme, as- sonance, alliteration, feature rhyme, meter, etc.
The contributions reflect a wide concept of what is a “proverb”. Some of the proverbs seem to be simple reminders of how to farm various soils, e.g. “Do not plow upland in the fall” (Korea, p. 74) and “No one thrives by tilling sandy soil, and no one is ruined by ploughing clay” (India, p. 42). Other proverbs refer to soil, but do not primarily give agricultural advice about soil. Rather, they are metaphorical, such as “There is no field without hillside” (Spain, p. 179), which reminds people that life has both positive and negative events.
Some Egyptian entries are long, one 10 lines long, but the translation and explanation are not clear, possibly intermingled (p. 14). Some of the Indian examples are prayers related to soil (p. 41). Alan Dundes argued that similar weather proverbs were merely mnemonics being classified as proverbs (at least by a Western European definition of “proverb”). However, it seems wise to pay attention to the native speakers’ concepts of “proverb” from various languages; if they classify such sayings as “proverbs”, then outsiders should ponder what these writers’ definition of “proverb” encompasses. However, many of the contributions from North America are the least proverbial, many simply quotations about soil, with sources noted, e.g. “Land, then, is not merely soil; it is a fountain of energy flowing through circuit of soils, plants, and animals” (p. 220).
Most of the proverbs are accompanied by helpful explanations, e.g. “A farmer becomes rich if a shō (1.8 liters) of soil accumulates in his bed,” is explained as “This proverb implies that farmers who work hard on their farms and fall asleep in bed wearing dirty clothes and muddy shoes become rich” (Japan, p. 64). Not surprisingly, some proverbs are found in more than one country, e.g. “Soil without dung is like a cow without her calf” (India p. 43, Pakistan p. 87). The book concludes with an index, enabling searches, such as finding out that four countries have proverbs valuing soil as equal to, or above, gold.
As with any collection of proverbs, there are examples to be found of many grammatical constructions: rhetorical questions, imperatives, adynaton, counter proverbs, dialogue proverbs, wellerism proverbs (not surprisingly, one with soil speaking, Turkey, p. 56), etc. It is interesting to compare proverbs from many languages all in one book, comparing the artistic features of their proverbs. For example, rhyme was observed commonly in proverbs from Europe, but not from East Asia.

Peter Unseth, Dallas International University & SIL Intl.

PROVERBIUM 37 (2020)