Gdzie rośnie dziewanna, bez posagu panna
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What it means
“Where mullein grows, a girl has no dowry.” Mullein (dziewanna) was associated with poor, uncultivated land. If it grows on your land, the family is too poor to provide a dowry.
Vocabulary
- dziewanna — mullein (a tall wild plant, Verbascum)
- posag — dowry
- panna — maiden, unmarried girl
Grammar note
'Bez posagu' — 'without a dowry', using the genitive after 'bez'.
Cultural context
Reflects the historical importance of the dowry in Polish rural society and the use of plants as indicators of land quality.
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