1. Definition and related forms
Proverbs are statements of rules of life (understood as recommendations for action or declarations of fact [2. 98 f.]), restricted in validity (to a certain addressee group or a certain situation), made with a certain popular appeal [6. 211] in a relatively standardized form [4]; [10] and with diverse functions that vary according to situation [8. 1292].
The English “proverb” and the cognates in the Romance l…