1. Definition 

Yànyǔ 諺語 is “a fixed sentence, prevailing among the common people, which in simple words expresses a profound truth” (Xiàndài Hànyǔ Cídiǎn 2005:1573). The term yànyǔ was taken to be the equivalent of English ‘proverb’, French proverbe and German Sprichwort by Guō (1925:5). Rohsenow (2003:xiii) gives an extended definition: “Yànyǔ, or ‘proverbs’ … are fundamentally an oral form consisting of complete sent…