LITHUANIAN QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES	ISSN 0024-5089 Copyright © 2019 LITUANUS Foundation, Inc. www.lituanus.org
Volume 65, No.1 - Spring 2019 Editor of this issue:Almantas Samalavičius

Abstract:

Five Latvian Proverbs, Global and Personal

Guntis Šmidchens

Abstract
Five proverbs spoken more than three decades ago by a Latvian- American immigrant can be used to reconstruct his worldview: Work is not a rabbit; Money is round; What you have in your head nobody can take from you; A person does not live to eat; and Meet your children’s children. Each proverb’s meanings are illuminated by comparative study of native and international variants, revealing ideas that are shared with many people across cultural boundaries. But the combination of these five texts in one person’s repertoire is unique, an expression of one inimitable individual’s identity.