Copyright©2019

P-ISSN: 1978-8118
E-ISSN: 2460-710X

173

Lingua Cultura, 13(3), August 2019, 173-180
DOI: 10.21512/lc.v13i3.5620

TRANSLATING PROVERBS IN THE MATE RAS MATE FILM TEXTS
FROM KARONESE LANGUAGE INTO ENGLISH

Milisi Sembiring1; Vivi Novalia Sitinjak2

1,2English and Literature, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Methodist Indonesia
Jl. Hang Tuah no 8, Madras Hulu Medan Polonia, Medan 20151, Indonesia

1milisi_sembiring@yahoo.com; 2vivi.novalia@p3mi.or.id

Received: 07th May 2019/Revised: 11th June 2019/Accepted: 02nd July 2019

How to Cite: Sembiring, M., & Sitinjak, V. N. (2019). Translating proverbs in the Mate ras Mate film texts 
from Karonese language into English. Lingua Cultura, 13(3), 173-180.

https://doi.org/10.21512/lc.v13i3.5620

ABSTRACT

The research aimed to explore the problems and the solutions in translating proverbs in the Source Language (SL) into the 
Target Language (TL). This research applied a qualitative research and supported by cultural and translation analyses. 
The data were collected from the dialogues of Ngapul and Yerti in the film of “Mate ras Mate”. The Karonese proverbs 
in the MRM film texts were the SL. The researchers translated the SL and found out their equivalents in the TL in English. 
The data for this research were gathered from its film text. After collecting the proverbs in film, the researchers identified 
and translated them into English. The researchers applied the translation procedures of cultural equivalent, paraphrase, 
descriptive equivalent, and literal translation method to translate the proverbs in the SL into the TL. The result shows that 
many Karonese proverbs and cultural terms in the SL have no equivalent in the TL.

Keywords: English, equivalent, Karonese, proverbs, translation

INTRODUCTION

Translators can produce a rich explanation of the 
unknown concept of the Source Language (SL) text in the 
Target Language (TL) text by focusing on the creativity. 
Furthermore, translation ultimately has the purpose of 
making the translation results have similar meanings to 
the source text (Tilusubaya & Nababan, & Santosa, 2018). 
An important criterion for the quality of the translation is 
how the translation can be equivalent to the source text. 
Translation function to help people in other countries who 
do not understand the language of other countries but 
want to access information from it (Aloojaha, Nababan, & 
Djatmika, 2018). 

Translating a cultural term using one technique of 
translation is not good (Putrawan, 2018). From his point of 
view, there is no restriction on the technique of translation, 
such as the combination of SL-oriented techniques of 
translation and that of TL-oriented. Translating a film text 
from SL into TL might be acceptable if the messages of an SL 
have their equivalences in a TL. Cross-linguistic component 
and cross-cultural practice are crucial in translation since 
the earliest times. People can regard translation as ideas and 
expression that have existed in a SL and later will be shown 
as if it is something that preexisted in a TL (House, 2015).

The messages of the SL consists of cultural terms, and 

it cannot be translated into the TL, because their equivalences 
are not found in the TL. They are untranslatable, and the 
translation procedures are needed to move the messages 
of a SL into a TL. The role of authors and translators are 
needed in such a situation. To know more about translating 
cultural terms of Karonese society into English can be seen 
in Sembiring (2015) and Sembiring and Panggabean (2018).

The researchers translate proverbs in Mate ras Mate 
film texts into English. There are 26 proverbs in the film 
texts in Karonese society. Mate ras Mate is translated live 
and die together, live uses as an additional word of the verb 
to make the title clear. The cultural equivalent of the Mate 
ras Mate is a sincere love in the TL. The cultural equivalent 
is used to get the sense of Mate ras Mate in the TL. The film 
Mate ras Mate told about a pretty girl whose name is Yerti. 
She had fallen in love with a young man from her village 
named Ngapul since she was in high school. Yerti had been 
dropped out from her school, but Ngapul continued his 
study to the college. This is not an obstacle for both of them 
to be in love together. Ngapul was a child who was born 
and raised by a wealthy authoritative and arrogant family. 
Ngapul was working in the company when he pleaded for 
his parents to propose Yerti.  However, Ngapul’s wish was 
refused by his parents arrogantly and brutally.

The refusal of Ngapul’s parents to marry Yerti did 
not make him disappointed or surrender, Ngapul was aware 



174 LINGUA CULTURA, Vol. 13 No. 3, August 2019, 173-180   

like the English proverb, saying ‘many roads lead to Rome’ 
to get married with Yerti. Unfortunately, when Ngapul was 
looking for the solution to keep ‘till death do us apart’ with 
Yerti, he got an accident on his way home and cause his left 
leg amputated. Since Ngapul got the accident, his parents 
changed their arrogance and vanity. Yerti’s mother refused 
Ngapul’s wishes to marry Yerti. The causes of her refusal 
were Ngapul’s tragedy which his left leg was amputated and 
Ndihawa’s proposal to marry Yerti. Ndihawa was Yerti’s 
‘impal’ or cousin. In Karonese culture, marrying ‘impal’ is a 
dream of Karonese society.

Yerti’s mother approaches Ndihawa, who was 
Yerti’s impal, and she persuaded him to marry Yerti. Her 
desire was related to the dream of Karonese society in 
which their daughter will marry her impal, and so would 
their son. A man’s impal is his mother’s brother’s daughter, 
and a woman’s impal is her father’s sister’s son. Ndihawa’s 
proposal to marry Yerti was accepted. While Yerti and 
Ndihawa are having the wedding ceremony, Ngapul arrived 
and told that he already had a wife and two children. The 
wedding ceremony was stopped, and Yerti refused to marry 
him.

The objectives of this research are to find out and 
to explore the translation procedures and methods of 
translating proverbs in the SL into the TL. Translating 
proverbs in certain languages into English can be as 
additional materials in the process of learning English. 
Lecture material is prepared based on such wisdom. Then 
it will be linked to students’ need and stakeholders. In this 
way, the local wisdom Baduy tribe can be excavated and 
preserved. Besides, local wisdom can be internalized into 
the character of students majoring in English education 
(Hamer et al., 2017).

METHODS

This research applies a qualitative research, and the 
data are analyzed by translation analysis. The data are taken 
from the dialogues of Mate ras Mate film by Hendry Bangun 
which is shown in 2001, 2002, and 2003.  The dialogues 
among Ngapul, Yerti, and Yerti’s mother in this film are the 
data of this research. In analyzing the data, the researchers 
should consider the context of a culture which relates to the 
concept of genre. It describes how people within a culture 
use language to achieve a certain purpose (Saldanha & 
O’Brien, 2014).

The dialogues consist of proverbs as the data in this 
research. The researchers watch the film of Mate ras Mate 
and copy all the dialogues in SL. The data are translated into 
TL, and the proverbs are analyzed from the linguistic and 
cultural perspectives.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

The researchers do not distinguish the types of 
proverbs in translating the SL into the TL. One day, Yerti 
gets surprised because she does not expect that Ngapul is 
back to the village, and he directly meets her in the rice 
field when she is chasing away birds. Ngapul shows her 
the photos of his graduation ceremony. He goes back home 
earlier because the graduation ceremony has to be quickened 
and his longingness to meet Yerti. Yerti appreciates Ngapul’s 
success, and she hopes that it would please his parents. Yerti 
enjoys Ngapul’s ability in reading a poem and appreciates 

his willingness to keep their promise of mate ras mate. In 
waiting for Ngapul’s presence in their village, Yerti feels her 
heartless peaceful. It is like cengkeru irambasken (Data 1).

Data 1
SL: ‘Pas bagi cengkeru irambasken’
TL: It is like ‘a cloud of the wind slammed moving 

without direction’.
 
What can be clearly seen in Data 1 is the equivalent 

of the proverb in the SL is found in the TL. It does not 
have the same structure rules and culture. In the process of 
translation, the authors apply both Newmark’s translation 
methods and translation procedures. In translation methods, 
the focus on the texts, they are source-oriented translation 
methods and target text-oriented translation methods 
(Newmark, 1988). Translating a text related to culture is 
something questioning and difficult, which requires great 
effort and determination for a translator (Hilman, 2015). 
Expertise in the knowledge of the culture of a SL and a TL 
is needed to transport a message from a SL to a TL accepted. 
This aims to avoid confusion of a TL readers where they 
do not know the culture of what they read. The translation 
is an interdisciplinary, interlingua, and intercultural activity 
(Dewi, 2018).

Next is Ngapul convinces Yerti that what he is doing 
is to make them happy. He tells her that nothing to be done 
for his love. The extolment of Yerti to Ngapul can be too 
great felt and worried that unexpected this will happen in 
their relationship and make their heart, such as in Data 2.

Data 2
SL: Getem bagi abu
TL: Be shattered like dust.

As Data 2 shows, there is a significant difference 
between the SL and TL. The proverb in SL is active and it 
is translated, and changed to be  passive in TL. The proverb 
getem bagi abu in SL is translated literally to  be shattered 
like dust in TL.

Yerti tells what is in her heart. The translation does 
not become clear in TL. It is difficult to understand for 
an English speaking people  who does not sense with the 
comparison of heart to dust (Data 3). The proverb pas bagi 
si ngkarat tebu does not have a cultural equivalent in the 
TL. The literal translation is applied in translating the SL 
into the TL. The literal translation of pas bagi si ngakarat 
tebu is ‘like biting sugar cane’. Furthermore, the authors 
use introductory and explain its proverb in the TL. So the 
authors translate to be ‘it is like biting sugar can’. The literal 
translation does not reveal the complete meanings of the 
proverb in the TL. The words that he said are true. 

Data 3
SL: Pas bagi si ngkarat tebu 
TL: It is like biting sugar cane. It is sweet in the lips and 

it is sweeter in his heart. 

On the next evening, Ngapul invites his friend along, 
Teras, to meet Yerti that she is pounding rice with her 
friends. Ngapul wishes to know his friend’s success, who 
lives in the village. In data 4, Teras tells Ngapul something, 
and the authors use the method of a literal translation.



175Translating Proverbs in the .... (Milisi Sembiring; Vivi Novalia Sitinjak)

Data 4
SL: Pas bagi sinadingken page buron, ngayaki page 

redangen  
TL: That means like leaving the harvested rice field to 

look for the planting rice, that nothing is harvested. 

The messages of an SL is translated literally in a 
TL. 

In Data 5, Yerti asks for Ngapul’s integrity. The 
authors use the translation procedure of descriptive 
equivalent to get the explanation of the SL in the TL. The 
proverb in SL has no equivalent in TL; therefore, the authors 
use the translation procedure of descriptive equivalent.

Data 5
SL: Pas bagi nutu page lapong-lapong   
TL: It is like pounding empty rice. It sounds just 

aloud to make other people know that someone 
is pondering, but the pondering of the rice got 
nothing. If this happens in her life, it is like a mess. 

While in Data 6, the authors translate proverb in 
the SL by using the translation method of literal translation 
method in the TL.

Data 6
SL: Pas bagi kerbo gondok tertatap lau meciho teri-

nem lau megembur   
TL: Like buffalo which horns fall down, it sees clean 

water, but it should drink dirty water. It happens 
because of its horns. It also happens when a buffalo 
wants to eat green grass, but it eats dry grass. 

Next, in Data 7, Ngapul wants to prove his love for 
Yerti. On the next day, they go to Yerti’s father’s grave, 
and bring some flowers and put them on the grave to prove 
Ngapul’s integrity. They take oaths Yerti’s father’s grave.

In data 7, the authors use literal translation.

Data 7
SL: Mate ras mate kita duana janahna namaken isap 

ibabo kuburen bp Yerti   
TL: Till death us apart while Ngapul was putting the 

cigarette on a fern.

In Data 8, Ngapul promises if  he rejects Yerti’s love, 
his life will be in deep pain. Descriptive equivalent is used 
in which the authors describe pas bagi batang in relevant 
explanations to clarify the meaning in the TL.

Data 8
SL: Pas bagi batang ersam   
TL: That means the fern that will never change its 

color, and cannot bear fruits.

Then in Data 9, Yerti asks Ngapul not to keep crying. 
She has said, “I have known how you love me, and we hope 
that we are one heart, we are always together in this life.” 
The authors use cultural equivalent which involves moving 
the SL cultural word into its equivalent in the TL.

Data 9
SL: Mate ras mate kita duana’  

TL: This proverb is translated into ‘true love’ since then 
they are always like ‘till death do us  apart’.

On the next evening when there is dinner time, 
Yerti’s mother asks her about Ndihawa’s proposal. He is her 
father’s sister’s son; he is her brother in law. However, Yerti 
still does not accept his proposal because they have both 
said their oaths (Ngapul and Yerti) and said to her mother, 
why has not he proposed her before. Yerti adds that she and 
Ngapul are like vegetable and salt that cannot be separated. 
It means that they need one another. The translation of 
proverb in the SL is done by descriptive equivalent with 
their love cannot be separated. It does not have a cultural 
equivalent in the TL.

Data 10
SL: Pas bagi gulen ras sira. 
TL: Vegatable and salt cannot be separated. It means 

that they need one another.

Hearing the explanation, Yerti’s mother is furious. 
She has said, “how can you be with Ngapul? He is a rich 
man; you do not deserve to be his girlfriend,” and “siksik 
lebe maka tindes” (Data 11). It uses the translation procedure 
of cultural equivalent because both in SL and TL, they have 
proverbs.

Data 11
SL: Siksik lebe maka tindes  
TL: Look before you leap (this proverb  has cultural 

equivalent in the TL). It means that someone must 
think before doing something.

The translation of data 12 also uses cultural 
equivalent translation procedure. It is applied because both 
SL and TL have  proverbs.

Data 12
SL: Anak silenga tubuh ise pe labo beloh erban 

gelarna  
TL: Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched, 

he probably does not love you.

Next is Teras goes to Yerti’s house to bring Ngapul’s 
letter. Ngapul tells her in his letter that he wants to propose 
her next week. He goes to his village to tell his parents about 
what he wants to do, but his parents are furious because, in 
their mind, Yerti does not deserve to be his son’s wife. It can 
be seen in Data 13. Data 13 is the adverb in the SL, but it is 
explained to get the close meaning in the TL. It is because 
of the difficulties to translate, and there is no equivalent in 
the TL.

Data 13
SL: Pala bengket pagi gajah ku lubang jarum, maka 

tampil Yerti jadi parmaenku   
TL: It is like an elephant enters a pinhole. It means  

something is impossible.

His father’s statement does not make Ngapul 
surrender. He goes to meet his uncle to get permission, but 
his uncle has been told by his father not to make Yerti as 
her daughter in law. Ngapul keeps searching the solution, 



176 LINGUA CULTURA, Vol. 13 No. 3, August 2019, 173-180   

he goes to Medan, but on his way to the bus station in 
Kabanjahe, he gets an accident and it makes his left foot has 
to be amputated. Yerti’s mother tells her not to meet Ngapul 
anymore because he is a physical defect. This makes her 
mother very arrogant and proud. 

In Data 14, Yerti’s mother tells her that if Ngapul’s 
parents have not come and see Yerti’s mother, she does not 
agree Yerti marries Ngapul. In this data, the authors use 
descriptive equivalent translation procedure.

Data 14
SL: Adi lenga pagi nembah tempulak nangdangi kuliki, 

aku lenga senang engko  man bana   
TL: If the weasel has not turned an eagle I do not agree 

that Yerti will marry Ngapul.

On the next day, a friend of Ngapul, Numpak, goes to 
meet Yerti and asks her to meet Ngapul on a hill because he 
is very desperate and sad. However, this plan is known by 
Tala, a friend of Ndihawa, and Tala tells it to Yerti’s mother. 
She is very disappointed and has said that Ngapul’s father 
does not expect to have a poor daughter in law (Data 15). 
This data uses descriptive equivalent translation procedure.

Data 15
SL: Labo man ayaken batu megulang 
TL: That means you cannot get the rolling stone 

because Ngapul’s farther is very rich. He does not 
expect to have a poor daughter in law. 

Yerti’s mother statement makes Ngapul to be more 
desperate. He tells Numpak that he does not want Ndihawa 
to get married to Yerti and he does not want Ndihawa to 
get married to her (Data 16). This data uses descriptive 
equivalent translation procedure.

Data 16
SL: Pala retap pagi kesahku simolun olun enda, maka 

Yerti erdemu ras Ndihawa 
TL: Ngapul does not want Ndihawa to get married to 

her whatever cost it is. It also means as far as he is 
still alive, he does not want Ndihawa to get married 
to her.

In Data 17, Ngapul is very desperate and has said, 
“Lasam bagi singkanting jambe”. It is translated by using 
a paraphrase. The authors, as translators produce it with the 
useless effort by explaining the meaning without changing 
the original one.

Data 17
SL: Lasam bagi singkanting jambe  
TL: It is useless to get something from the bad thing. 

In Data 18, Numpak has said the proverb of labo 
tertaka lau. In SL, it has an equivalent of ‘the camera cannot 
lie’ in TL. It uses cultural equivalent in translating that 
proverb. It is same with Data 18; Data 19 also uses cultural 
equivalent in translating the proverb ‘Labo terukuri embang 
merurus’.

Data 18
SL: Labo tertaka lau

TL: A good beginning makes a good ending. It means 
nothing is to be prevented if the love comes. 

Data 19
SL: Labo terukuri embang merurus 
TL: We will be together soon.

On the other side, Ngapul’s father is very disappointed 
and hopeless. Ngapul’s parents feel that it is their mistake 
not to take Yerti to be their daughter in law. He thinks what 
happens in his family because of the wrath of God. It is very 
difficult for Ngapul’s father to decide which one to take. It 
can be seen in Data 20. This data uses descriptive equivalent 
in translate the proverb.

Data 20
SL: Pas bagi sinangkih pinang surega, adi ku das mbiar 

kena suapna, adi ku teroh  mbiar kena rogana
TL: That means something like there is no way to 

make the decision because if Yerti and Ngapul get  
married, Ngapul’s father would said that it made 
him to put in to the jail then  Ngapul’s  parents 
agreed to take them both to be husband and wife or 
to get married. 

In Data 21, Ndihawa asks Yerti to discuss his 
wishes to marry her. Ndihawa has said the proverb ‘Kam 
jadi bintang pemerdangen ibas jabu’, that means Yerti will 
be the blessing in his family. In Data 21, the authors use 
descriptive equivalent to translate it.

Data 21
SL: Kam jadi bintang pemerdangen ibas jabu
TL: You will be the blessing in my family.

In Data 22, Yerti tells him frankly that it is seen that 
her heart is with Ngapul. It is very difficult for Yerti and 
Ndihawa to be together and to get married, and Ndihawa 
says, “Bagi pepulung binurung seh bengket ku bubu kel 
ngenca.” The authors use literal translation.

Data 22
SL: Bagi pepulung binurung seh bengket ku bubu kel 

ngenca
TL: The fish that is not found if it is in the net.

Data 23
SL: Pas bagi tape la erbungkus
TL: That means something that is not taken. It seems to 

be sweet or unsweet. Ndihawa has said to Ngapul 
that he is like. 

Data 24
SL: Pas bagi sinek-sinek lau bengap
TL: Silence is not golden. It means man of his word is 

dangerous.

Data 23 and Data 24 in SL has equivalent in TL. It 
is translated by the cultural equivalent. Both SL and TL do 
not have the same cultures, but they have the same meaning. 
SL in Data 24 talks about the silence of the river named lau 
bengap, but it can sink the swimmers. 

When Yerti arrives at home, her mother wants to 
know about her plan with Ndihawa. Yerti tells her frankly 



177Translating Proverbs in the .... (Milisi Sembiring; Vivi Novalia Sitinjak)

that her body is with Ndihawa, but her love is with Ngapul. 
Yerti’s mother is outraged. She accuses Ngapul as the source 
of the Yerti’s unconsciousness. However, Yerti says to her 
mother that she is insane, but she loves Ngapul so much, and 
they cannot be separated from one another. Yerti says, “ if 
you ask me to leave him, I will die.” 

Hearing Yerti’s statement, it makes her mother 
wants to commit suicide if Yerti still does not want to take 
Ndihawa to be her husband. Finally, Yerti agrees to get 
married to Ndihawa. The plan of their engagement has 
been made. Ndihawa explains it to his parents that their 
engagement is much better canceled because Yerti actually 
does not love him. However, Ndihawa’s mother twists on it, 
and his father says like in Data 25. This doubtness does not 
make Ndihawa and his father cancel their engagement. This 
proverb cannot be translated literally and  it has no natural 
cultural equivalent in TL.

Data 25
SL: Ula kari bagi kudin taneh, dosa irempu maka pecah
TL: The unbond cannot be bonded.

In Data 26, Yerti’s mother got a dream that her 
ex-husband comes in her dream and tells her something. 
This proverb has no proverb in TL; therefore, the literal 
translation is applied.

Data 26
SL: Engkai maka kucing nangko beltu-beltu kambing 

ipek- pekki 
TL: That means the weak man is always punished. 

Yerti’s mother asks what it means that “why you 
allow Ngapul to cry because you do not hate him, but his 
parents do. I do not want Ngapul to cry all the time.” The 
engagement does not happen because Yerti runs away and it 
makes Ngapul and friend of Ndihawa fight. Ngapul shows 
that Ndihawa has already got married and has one child in 
Java. This reality makes Ndihawa’s parents get ashamed, 
and they ask their son to fetch their granddaughter. The 
engagement is done but between Ngapul and Yerti. Ngapul 
and Yerti finally get married because of their true love 
even they have many bad experiences, but they cannot be 
separated till the death apart them.

The authors face a cultural obstacle in translating the 
SL into the TL. One of the problems is cultural equivalent 
from the SL to the TL. The translator should have the skills 
to know the cultures of both languages. It is not reasonable 
to translate a proverb while just searching at the google 
translation. Karonese proverbs in Mate ras Mate film convey 
specific meaning in a specific context of the situation. It 
expresses the culture, economic, social, knowledge, advice, 
morality, truth, virtue, irony, and love. Moreover, these are 
still applied in daily conversations.

A translation procedure is potentially working for the 
solution of a cultural problem from an SL into TL. Such 
proverbs have problems in translating to TL because they 
do not have the same cultural context. Karonese and English 
proverbs as sometimes show the different meaning as they 
are analyzed in the previous data. Besides, they also differ in 
many characteristics, such as morality, metaphor, love, and 
ethnic characteristics. The results of the proverb translation 
can be seen in Table 1 (see Appendix).

CONCLUSIONS

After translating the 26 proverbs from Karonese 
language into English, the authors find out some problems, 
such as some of the cultural terms in the SL are difficult 
to find out their cultural equivalent in the TL. Most of the 
proverbs in the SL cannot be translated literally only because 
the proverbs of the SL and the TL are different culturally. 
Many of proverbs in the SL have no equivalent in the TL. 

Therefore, the authors apply Newmark’s translation 
procedures of cultural equivalent, paraphrasing, and 
borrowing. Paraphrasing is applied because TL proverbs 
do not match the SL ones. The authors also use Newmark’s 
literal translation method.

The authors mostly use the translation procedures of 
cultural equivalent, descriptive equivalent, and paraphrase 
to overcome the problems of translating metaphors in SL 
into TL. The authors’ suggestion for further authors is to 
investigate mother tongue proverbs and to translate them 
into English proverbs before they are lost. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors thank to the Ministry of Research, 
Technology, and Higher Education of the Republic of 
Indonesia for supporting this work with research funding 
for 2018.

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179Translating Proverbs in the .... (Milisi Sembiring; Vivi Novalia Sitinjak)

Appendix

No Proverbs Translation Procedure Translation 
Method

1. SL: ‘Geluhku pas bagi cengkeru irambasken’ 
TL: Her life is like ‘cloud of the wind slammed moving without 
direction’.

Cultural Equivalent

2. SL: Getem bagi abu
TL: Be shattered like dust.

Literal translation

3. SL: Pas bagi si ngkarat tebu 
TL: It is like biting sugar cane.

Literal translation

4. SL: Pas bagi sinadingken page buron, ngayaki page redangen 
TL: It is like leaving the harvested rice field to look for the planting 
rice, that nothing is harvested.

Literal translation

5. SL: Pas bagi nutu page lapong-lapong 
TL: It is like pounding  empty rice. It sounds just aloud to make other 
people know that someone is poudering but the poundering of the 
rice got nothing.

Descriptive equivalent

6. SL: Pas bagi kerbo gondok tertatap lau meciho terinem lau megembur
TL: Like buffalo which horns fall down, it sees clean water but it 
should drink dirty water. 

Literal translation

7. SL: Mate ras mate kita duana janahna namaken isap ibabo kuburen 
bp Yerti
TL: Till death us apart  while Ngapul was putting the cigarette on a 
fern

Literal translation

8. SL: Pas bagi batang ersam
TL: It is like fern. It never changes its  color, and it can not bear fruits.

Descriptive equivalent

9. SL. ‘Mate ras mate kita duana’ 
TL. That shows that they have ‘true love’ since then they are always 
like ‘till death do us  apart’.

Descriptive equivalent

10. SL: Pas bagi gulen ras sira. 
TL: Something that cannot be separated, they need one another.

Descriptive equivalent

11. SL: Siksik lebe maka tindes 
TL: Think before acting

Cultural equivalent

12. SL: Anak silenga tubuh ise pe labo beloh erban gelarna
TL: Don’t count your chickens before  they’re hatched

Cultural eqivalent

13. SL: Pala bengket pagi gajah ku lubang jarum, maka tampil Yerti jadi 
permenku 
TL: It is like  an elephant  enters a pinhole, it means something is 
impossible.

Descriptive equivalent

14. SL: Adi lenga pagi nembah tempulak nangdangi kuliki, aku lenga 
senang engko man bana
TL: If the weasel has not turned an eagle I do not agree that Yerti will 
marry Ngapul. It means if Ngapul’s parent haven’t come and seen 
Yerti’s mother, she does not agree Yerty marries Ngapul.

Descriptive equivalent

15. SL: Labo man ayaken batu megulang
TL: That means you can’t get the rolling stone because Ngapul’s 
farther’s to get  the rich daughter in law.

Descriptive equivalent

16. SL: Pala retap pagi kesahku simolun olun enda, maka Yerti erdemu 
ras Ndihawa 
TL: That means, I do not want you to get married with  her  whatever 
cost it is, it also means as far as I am still alive, I don’t want you to 
get married with her.

Descriptive equivalent

17. SL: Lasam bagi singkanting jambe 
TL: That means it is impossible to get something from the bad thing. 

paraphrase

18. SL: Labo tertaka lau
TL: A good beginning makes a good ending. That means nothing is 
to be prevented if the love comes.

Cultural equivalent



180 LINGUA CULTURA, Vol. 13 No. 3, August 2019, 173-180   

Appendix (Continued)

No Proverbs Translation Procedure Translation 
Method

19. SL: Labo terukuri embang merurus 
TL: All good things must come to an end

Cultural Equivalent

20. SL: Pas bagi sinangkih pinang surega, adi ku das mbiar kena sua-
pna, adi ku teroh mbiar kena rogana
TL:Each of the alternative choices has  problems. 

Descriptive equivalent

21. SL: Kam jadi bintang pemerdangen ibas jabu
TL: You will be the blessing in our family.

Descriptive equivalent

22. SL:  Bagi pepulung binurung seh bengket ku bubu kel ngenca
TL: That means the fish that is not found if it is in the net.

Literal translation

23. SL: Pas bagi tape la erbungkus
TL: That means something that is not taken. It seems to be sweet or 
unsweet.

Descriptive equivalent

24. SL: Pas bagi sinek-sinek lau bengap
TL: Silence is not golden

Descriptive equivalent

25. SL: Ula kari bagi kudin taneh, dosa irempu maka pecah
TL: The unbond can’t be bonded. 

Literal translation

26. SL: Engkai maka kucing nangko beltu- beltu kambing ipek- pekki. 
TL: That means the weak man is always punished. 

Literal translation