sprichwort der woche: eine schwalbe macht noch keinen sommer.

junge Nestlinge

I've found another German proverb that makes good sense to me. What I like about it is that it uses everyday language, like many proverbs, and continues with the bird theme I've started. Because I am a bit of a bird brain.

Eine Schwalbe macht noch keinen Sommer.

Eine Schwalbe
OK, the bird in question. Die Schwalbe ist etwa 17 cm lang. Der Rücken ist metallisch glänzend blau-schwarz. Die Unterseite ist rahmweiß. Die Schwalbe verbringt den Sommer in Europa und den Winter in Afrika.

Have you guessed what it is yet? You're right, it's a swallow.

macht 
This is an example of a word where German ch becomes k in English.There are a number of these, including Milch (milk), Buch(book), Koch (cook). Macht means makes.

noch keinen Sommer
You probably know that Sommer means summer. The noch keinen is a little trickier. Literally kein  means not a or none. And here noch is used to mean yet.

The whole proverb then means roughly one swallow makes not yet a summer.

The English equivalent of this proverb is one swallow doesn't make a summer. This wise old saying is generally used to warn people not to get too excited about the smallest hint of good things to come. Swallows usually arrive in Europe when the weather begins to get warmer at the end of spring. They come to Europe to breed and food is plentiful for them during our summer months. After the breeding season they fly with their young to Africa in search of warm weather and food. To find out more about swallows you could read Dear Olly by Michael Morpurgo, the story of a swallow called Hero and his journey of thousands of miles to catch up with his family. Are there any swallows' nests near where you live?

Still not sure how to identify a swallow? Look at this little clip of a female swallow looking after her young.