In "Reggae Wisdom: Proverbs in Jamaican Music" Swami Anand Prahlad looks at the contexts and origins of these proverbs, using them as a cultural sheet music toward understanding the history of Jamaican culture, Rastafari religion, and the music that isthat culture's worldwide voice.

Jamaican Book of Proverbs is a compilation of beliefs or colloquial sayings rendered first in Patwah, the local vernacular, and then translated into English. The Essence of each proverb is given "as well as a general Contextual explanation underlining the proverb's comedic, applicable, and profound underpinnings." Take-aways, highlighted as Contemplations are also presented. The book's subtitle: 365 Daily Devotional Proverbs with Translations and Contextual Interpretations provides one primary intent of the book: an everyday reading guide for families, groups, or individuals at all reading levels. "Additional proverbs, given as Brata Proverbs, may be read at any time for entertainment or to further quench the thirst for universal truth and a higher sense of the expanding self." About the Author and Playwright: Beresford McLean was born in western St. Mary, Jamaica. He attended and taught high school in Kingston. In 1970 McLean emigrated to the United States where he studied physics and subsequently worked in engineering. His current focus is writing. Broken Gourds, his first inspirational folklore, was published to great acclaim in 2003. His second novel, Providence Pond, came three years later. Jamaican Book of Proverbs - a daily mediational guide based on Jamaican aphorisms - was published in the spring of 2018. McLean's third novel, a historical perspective on pre-independent Jamaica: Fish Hook River will be published in the fall of 2018. Beresford McLean's foray into playwriting is his shot play, First Snow. His first full length play The Good Villain will be released in fall 2018.

The elders in Jamaica sometimes use phrases or sentences they believe reflect a situation, or serve to caution the younger generation or old, unaware individuals. Many of these phrases or sentences may be used as words of inspiration and often allow for introspection and generate changes through behavioral modification. These are adages inherently uttered in the Jamaican dialect, some of which have been included and translated here into standard English by the author. This ensures a sense of clarity for non-Jamaicans and Jamaicans who aren’t as familiar to the indigenous dialect. The author’s main aim is to reach persons who are not Jamaicans, who would love to understand the meaning of words uttered in the Jamaican dialect, patois. The author also aims to facilitate inspiration, “social cautions,” and self-evaluation through each page of this book, with images included that somewhat reflect the message of each proverb. As such, the English version of each proverb is included, along with the proverb’s meaning. The images included should enhance clarity, especially for non-Jamaicans. The lyrics of the Jamaican National Anthem and Pledge have also been included to extend an understanding of the Jamaican culture and indicate what may be considered Jamaicanism. As a Jamaican, the author would like to operationally define Jamaicanism as the total quality management (TQM) of the Jamaican culture to present the best—as there is only the best—to the outside world, wrapped in the reality of diversity “out of many one people” (the Jamaican motto). The author’s interaction with people from other cultures exposed the sincere interest that others have in the language and subsequent accent of the Jamaican people. This fact is one of the inspirations for this book, as people from other cultures often prompt continuous utterance of the Jamaican dialect to indulge their ears in the melody of the English language in Jamaican tone. In addition, it is important for these proverbs to be used as empowerment, as cautionary sayings, and guiding tools for readers. With that in mind, a blank page is provided after each proverb to facilitate personal reflection and empowerment. The author would like readers to take away the message of caution and become empowered through proverbs and expressions of the elders. The book’s main idea is to convey the linguistic cultural awareness of the Jamaican people to the rest of the world and offer the elements of this awareness as empowerment, caution, and therapy to the Jamaican people and others around the world. It is suggested that this book would be an excellent gift for friends, employees, family, and associates outside Jamaica, or citizens and residents of other nations who are living in Jamaica. It is also a book for all Jamaicans, as it can impact morals and ensure cautions for life. It is important to use these proverbs in a therapeutic way, as they have benefits beyond semantics

Proverbs and sayings are a part of the fabric of life the world over, and that is no different in Jamaica. Featured in this book is patois, written not as broken English, but as patois based on the most recent authoritative works. Filled with colorful illustrations that are literal interpretations of the traditional proverbs and sayings, this book is a light-hearted exploration of the valuable lessons that some Jamaican proverbs have to offer.

Older Jamaicans will recall their parents or older persons saying; "ole time people use to sey ..." You would stop whatever you were doing as you knew that it would be followed by a proverb which was meant for you to stop your activity and to teach you a lesson you should not forget.The proverbs are written in the Jamaican language. All pronunciations are phonetic. An English translation is done as precisely as possible, followed by the meaning of the proverb.Veronica has attempted to give a brief insight into the lessons that may be learnt from these proverbs. She completes each with an action step you can take to cement these lessons in your lives.

Jamaican Creole, like many other contact languages, has taken its ultimate shape through the course of multi-lingual and multi-cultural influences. From the perspective of contact linguistics , this meticulous study examines Jamaican Creole proverbs in a corpus of over 1090 recorded sayings; it presents a framework of cultural changes in Jamaica accompanied by corresponding linguistic changes in its creole. The analysis clearly demonstrates that despite three centuries of extreme dominance by the British empire, Jamaicans successfully preserved the traditions of their own ancestors. Not only that. The poly-layered stimulus of various factors: geographic, cultural and, most prominently, linguistic, helped create a unique phenomenon – Jamaican creole culture. The vibrant life of the Jamaican people and their African background is best encapsulated in their proverbs, proverbs which constitute generations of wisdom passed from the 16th century and on. John R. Rickford, J.E. Wallace Sterling Professor of Linguistics and the Humanities, Stanford University The research theme of the very publication entitled Jamaican Proverbs fromthe Perspective of Contact Linguistics is a successful analysis of both linguistic and cultural contacts between English and African cultures that have been shaping the vernacular language of Jamaica. The study material consists of 1092 proverbs, all of which can be regarded as a first-hand record of sociolinguistic events that have had important influence upon the formation of the Jamaican creole language and its registers. Dr. Knapik proves beyond any reasonable doubt that the Jamaican linguistic and cultural world is a great example of a thriving microcosm which continues to incorporate various elements and can also very well serve as the basis for future research on patterns of language and culture development. (…) prof. dr hab. dr h.c. (mult.) †Jacek Fisiak

“A rich and compelling collection that will make a significant contribution to the study of Jamaican/West Indian/black folklore and culture” –Daryl Cumber Dance, Virginia Commonwealth University “A fantastic collection from the rich storehouse of Jamaican traditional oral literature” –Rex Nettleford, University of the West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica “A Wealth of Information…. The author carries the presentation of the proverbs/sayings to the level of socio-anthropological significance” –E. Valerie Smith, Florida A&M University In 1992, Jamaicans throughout the world celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of Jamaica’s formal independence from Britain this collection of Creole sayings contributes to the lively interest in cultural preservation which exists this year in anticipation of the event. The sayings, an archive of the wit and wisdom of many generations, aim to trigger reflection and thought. They are never fully explained, and, says the author, “in the most extreme situation one might well need an entire week to ponder and think seriously” about their meaning. They exert pressure to conform to community standards, and they influence conduct in much the same way as religion does. Strong in imagery and often poetic, the maxims draw upon a variety of well-known flora, fauna, and real or imaginary creatures the anansi, for example, famous for “playin’ de fool fe ketch wise” (playing foolish in order to catch the wise), is regarded as a favorite hero in folklore. Creole, initially constructed as a coded language, employs a number of West African linguistic traditions. These Creole sayings, a valuable addition to the literature and ethnography of the Caribbean region, link Jamaican culture to its African past. They offer delightful reading to Latin American scholars, to students of comparative sociology and anthropology, and to the general public. G. Llewellyn Watson is professor of sociology at the University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetowwn, Canada.

This Illustrated colour therapy book explores Jamaican Proverbs, including translations and explanations behind each unique proverb. This book will either introduce to you the world of Jamaican Proverbs or rekindle fond memories of such sayings you would have heard growing up from a wise soul. Jamaican Proverbs speaks to me of survival; a simple glimpse of wisdom, a spoken tradition having survived orally for hundreds of years.