Pithy local sayings from your travels?

Australians like to say "No Worries, or No Worry." It is kind of catchy.

Interesting geovagriffith

I don't at all get it though (feeling a bit dense this morning :) - what's the interplay between no worries and no worry?

I notice people in the UK say “Come on through” a lot, to invite a person into a room, space, etc

I notice people in the UK say “Come on through” a lot, to invite a
person into a room, space, etc

At college way back I lived in a share house with all Af Am kids from mostly Inglewood California, and those guys never said "come over" always "come through." I liked the transitory implication - there was a future in the turn of phrase - you'll come and go.

In the UK is it more like "make way"? You will be allowed to pass into the space?

My wife, who speaks a little German, just gave me a fun one:

Wer rastet, der rostet.

Translates to something like

If you rest you rust.

That feels pretty German to me :)

In Spain we have a big tradition of "Refranes" aka "Proverbs" that are passed down from generation to generation, many several centuries old. They have a very distinct flavor from our unique mix of cultures and history we have in Spain. Here are some good ones

"Quien se fue a Sevilla perdió su silla" - "Whoever goes to Sevilla loses his chair"
This is based on a fight between two men for the Archbishopric of Seville. The first to occupy the position went to Santiago de Compostela to prepare for the future position of the second. When he returned, his enemy had taken his position. It implies to be careful about abandoning certain advantageous positions or situations in life, because at any moment another person can take it away when you're not looking.

"En boca cerrada no entran moscas" - "Flies do not enter a closed mouth"
Basically being quiet is useful to avoid saying too much nonsense. It is said that, during a trip through Calatayud, a man from the region, unaware of the Spanish king's Carlos I jaw deformity, warned him to keep his mouth shut, because "the flies of this kingdom are mischievous", as he always has his mouth closed to hid the deformity.

"A enemigo que huye, puente de plata" - "To a fleeing enemy, a silver bridge"
This means if an opponent decides to abandon the fight against you, give him the opportunity to leave with honour. He may become an ally later. Spanish military leader Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba called el Gran Capitán, used this saying as a personal military maxim. He was the conqueror of Granada and kicked the pesky French out of Italy.

Er hat Nicht alle Tassen im Schrank. / He doesn't have all his cups in the cupboard

Home run Carlos, LOVE you contributions. Thank you!

In the UK is it more like "make way"? You will be allowed to pass into the space?

Is "Come through to my office" not something a doctor might say to you when you show up for an appointment in the US? I don't think it's as deep as "being allowed to pass".

Ms. Jo that's a good one! Many variations in English - most primary "a few cards short of a full deck" :)

Is "Come through to my office" not something a doctor might say to you
when you show up for an appointment in the US? I don't think it's as
deep as "being allowed to pass".

In the situation you describe, "come through" would not be the normative idiom in nearly all cases. Come to my office, come back to my office, come into my office, etc more usual.

One Scottish one that springs to mind:

Whit's fur ye'll no go by ye"

I usually hate trying to write in a Scottish accent but it's an expression that's to do with the inevitability of fate.

Also Scottish:

“Ah canna be annoyed wi’ it” = “I can’t be bothered”. Glasgow.

“Come away in”.

“Och: Havers” = to someone talking nonsense.

Gerry: my Granny used to say your contribution.

Petta Reddast is the Icelandic saying for "it will work out".

Mikliz do you have a literal translation?

From a native English guide speaking about a politician: "He's two sandwiches short of a picnic".

I've always loved the Swiss (or German?) saying "Alles in Butter" which means something like “all is good” or “everything is fine.”

This isn’t pithy, but I find it interesting.

In Swedish, ” Hålla tummarna” (Hold the thumbs).

Holding your thumbs is the equivalent of keeping your fingers crossed in English.

My all time favorite from the UK: He's lost the plot.

It describes the ineptness I feel every morning before coffee.

This is pretty negative but appealed to my cynical soul: from Poland, "the mother of idiots is always pregnant."

to clarify, in context it means there is a never ending supply of idiots out there. Sometimes people have thought it was an insult to pregnant women.

In England, it's common to say "mine" to mean "my place." e.g. Shall we go to mine? My daughter was saying this after spending a year at Exeter. She dated a British soldier for 5 years, and he would always refer to his friends and fellow soldiers as "the lads."

When we were in Edinburgh one May, the day was extremely cold and blustery. People were wearing parkas, and I was wishing I had one. In one shop, the clerk commented on the weather, and I said, "I'm from Canada, and I'm freezing." He said, "I'm from here, and this has me 'knocked for sixes.'"

In Ireland, I like the expression, "It'll be grand."

I listen to audiobooks about a country doctor in Northern Ireland, and I love some of the expressions. I'm not sure how current they are, but some of them include: "Have a pew." (Have a seat.) And, my favourite: "Away on and chase yerself." (Go on with you.)

I'm Cree, and a word that means "Netflix and Chill" or "hooking up" is "snagging." When you go to the powwow, you'd better bring your "snagging blanket." "Skoden" means "let's go then" and "sdoodis" means "let's do this."

In my younger years, I spent a lot of time in Hawai'i and had a lot of kanaka (Hawai'ian) and kamaina (a local from elsewhere who fits right in) friends. They all commonly used a number of Hawai'ian words, as did many of the people who worked at the places we hung out. So, people would ask "you pau?" instead of "are you finished?," and call out "hana ho." instead of "encore" or "more." "Ono" is good. "Pupu" means snack or small bite. (So, it is possible to have an "ono pupu" LOL).

BB you reminded me of something my friends and relatives in Hawaii would say
“no pick yoa Hana budda “. = don’t pick your boogers

As one I think is more Northern Irish (and west of Scotland to some degree), adding "so it is" as a point of emphasis is very common. I worked with someone in Glasgow in the past and she'd add it to practically every sentence. I watched a video of an Irish guy showing off his collection of rally [racing] cars the other day and every single one was wrapped up with "It's a great wee car, so it is."

Gerry M, that's another one I've noticed in the books about the doctor in Northern Ireland.

LOL, Linda.

BB you reminded me of something my friends and relatives in Hawaii would say
“no pick yoa Hana budda “. = don’t pick your boogers

Gerry "innit" is the same for the London "road man" etc

We're doing both aphorisms and idiomatic expression, which is fine by me, both interesting

Yes, it is. The dialect in London has changed dramatically in the last 40 or 50 years though. "Innit" has crossed cultural borders from the roadman into more mainstream speech. You've got Multicultural London English and its cousin, Estuary English now in modern times. The cockney accent and vocabulary of Dick Van Dyke is all but dead, except maybe in the very elderly.

"You've got Multicultural London English and its cousin, Estuary English now in modern times."

Multicultural London English has got to be the coolest sounding English dialect (or I guess "sociolect") on the planet. I think sometimes I hear it penetrating USA East Coast hip hop culture even. It's fascinating how quickly English evolves in England ....

picking up on the previously mentioned "knocked for six", also "hit for six" - the derivation is from the sport of Cricket.

Depending on how the batter hits (or doesn't) the ball they can collect anywhere from zero to six runs each time the ball is bowled. The person on the opposite team delivering the ball from 22 yards away is called the bowler and the ball is "bowled".

Hitting the ball well will result in runs, from 1 to 6. Four is if the ball reaches the boundary rope just before the stands, six if the ball goes over without bouncing - the equivalent to baseball's hit out of the park or into the bleachers for a home run.

So the saying isn't directly referring to the batter but to the bowler. Being hit for (or knocked for) six is the worst result that can happen to a bowler (the only exception is if the ball is delivered illegally so there are extra runs on top).

So being hit for six is to have a really bad day or circumstance....

I'll get you all converted to the lovely game of cricket yet... such a great game

I thought it quite unusual a cricket idiom being used in Edinburgh. It must have been an Englishman :-)

In my junior high Spanish class we had to answer the roll call with a Spanish saying. I always used “ Little by little one goes far”.

This idiom was said to me this trip in Vienna in a restaurant where I occupied a table for 5 (it wasn't crowded then) and as the dinner hour wore on, the waitress asked 4 parties (2 were American, one was Spanish -speaking) if they wanted to share the table with me. All these parties (one couple, or a group of 3) said no. They wanted a table to themselves, without a stranger sitting among them.

The next group was a party of 4 adults who upon my asking were German, turned out to be from Sigmaringen an der Donau, which I was familiar with.. They told the waitress that sharing the table was no problem. I told the mother (basically my age) of the previous other parties not willing to share.

She then asserted emphatically , "Andere Länder, andere Sitten !" (Other countries, other customs ) She's right.

This saying in French appears on a plate: (very important )...."Prenez le temps de rire." (Take time to laugh )

Another Scots’ one:

If it’s cold, you can say “It’s parky” or “It’s Baltic.”

I thought it quite unusual a cricket idiom being used in Edinburgh. It must have been an Englishman :-)

Not according to him nor his accent. :)

I appreciate finding out the origins of that expression, though.

If it’s cold, you can say “It’s parky”

that's all over the UK

Hank—I don’t. I just keep seeing those two words in various Icelandic websites as me have adopted the saying.

I don't know how to spell in provencal, but usually I can reproduce the correct pronunciation (from my husband's grandmother) fairly decently.

I will try to spell this phonetically (in French phonetics) and hope the pronunciation comes through. Just remember, Provencal always carries a strong Italian accent and thrust! Whispering is not allowed. And don't forget to use your hands for emphasis!
"Eh ben mangia, eh ben begeu, eh ren paga." "I ate well, I drank well, I paid nothing".

When not in polite compoany, or with close family, people sometimes add "Eh ben gaga." "I pooped well". (gaga=caca)
Sorry for the last, but this IS about pithy local sayings.