8 h 51 minAudiobook7 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
How much hard-earned wisdom—and dry humour—can fit into a single line?
In The Proverbs of Scotland, Alexander Hislop presents short, sharp sayings about money, work, marriage, weather and neighbours. Here, advice and jokes reveal a hard, thrifty way of life shaped by everyday concerns. These proverbs praise effort and saving, while taking aim at idleness, waste and showing off.
Much of the collection speaks in Scots, where blunt words, familiar pictures and lively sounds give the humour its bite. Hislop’s notes and glossary help explain older words and customs. Sayings about church, ministers, sin and providence sit alongside everyday concerns, revealing how faith, folk belief and sly humour share the same ground.
What you’ll discover
- Wisdom in small spaces Discover how plain, balanced or rhyming sayings turn everyday experience into something easy to remember.
- The bite of Scots Enjoy short words and homely pictures whose sound carries much of the joke.
- Thrift without soft edges Meet brisk advice on saving and labour, with little patience for waste or pretence.
- Belief meets dry humour Explore sayings that treat religion with respect, a sly poke, or both.
- Help with older words Let the notes and glossary bring unfamiliar speech and customs within reach.
Who will love it
Perfect for lovers of sayings and word play, readers of Burns and Walter Scott, family historians, and anyone who enjoys dipping into short, witty lines about money, marriage, food and folly.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A people's wisdom is gathered by many hands
- Thrift and a full purse rule daily life
- Friends are tested by need and distance
- Marriage and family are sharp subjects
- Food, drink and hunger shape the humour
- The devil, the law and the laird get no awe
- Weather, farm and place give the sayings roots
- Teasing comparisons and insults carry the wit
- The book lives through notes, novels and a glossary
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Les Proverbes d’Écosse
by Alexander Hislop · 1862
A cat may look at a king, a black hen lays a white egg, and a Scot has a saying for every case.
Medium level5–10 hours to readfrançais
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In short
What does a Scot mean when he says a halfpenny cat may look at a king? Alexander Hislop gathered thousands of such sayings into The Proverbs of Scotland, adding notes and a glossary of Scots words.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A people's wisdom is gathered by many hands
Hislop presents his book as the latest in a line of collectors rather than a work of his own invention. The earliest effort belongs to Archbishop Beaton, around the time of the Reformation, but little is known of it. The first important collection came from the Reverend David Fergusson of Dunfermline, who recorded nine hundred and forty sayings.
Later came James Kelly, whose London volume of 1721 held nearly three thousand proverbs with notes and parallels. Allan Ramsay thought Kelly's Scots was poor and published his own version, urging farmers and shepherds to teach proverbs to their children. Then Andrew Henderson's large book of 1832 appeared, with an introduction by the poet Motherwell.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 7 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1862
- Language
- français
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Hislop, Alexander. The Proverbs of Scotland. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-proverbs-of-scotland.
Hislop, A. (2026). The proverbs of Scotland. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-proverbs-of-scotland (Original work published 1862)
Hislop, Alexander. The Proverbs of Scotland. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-proverbs-of-scotland.
@book{hislop2026proverbs,
author = {Hislop, Alexander},
title = {The Proverbs of Scotland},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-proverbs-of-scotland},
note = {First published 1862}
}
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What is The Proverbs of Scotland about?
It is a large alphabetical collection of Scottish proverbs and sayings on money, friends, marriage, food, work and weather, with notes explaining their use and a glossary of Scots words at the back.
Who was Alexander Hislop?
Hislop was a Scottish compiler who issued his first edition of proverbs in 1862. He built on the earlier collections of Fergusson, Kelly, Ramsay and Henderson, and added sayings from Scott, Galt, Hogg and people he met.
What does the glossary in the book do?
It explains Scots words found in the sayings, such as bannock, kirk, laird and tocher, giving plain English meanings. This makes the older speech easy to follow when you read the proverbs.
The author
Alexander Hislop
1807–1865 · Scottish publisher and writer
Free Church of Scotland minister.
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