Komu Bóg rozumu nie da, kowal mu go nie ukuje
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What it means
Whom God gives no wit, a blacksmith cannot forge it for him. Intelligence cannot be manufactured or forced.
English equivalent
You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
Vocabulary
- Bóg — God
- rozum — reason, wit, intelligence
- kowal — blacksmith
- ukuć — to forge, to hammer out
Grammar note
'Komu... nie da' uses the dative 'komu' (to whom). 'Nie ukuje' is the negated perfective future of 'ukuć'. The parallel structure contrasts divine gift with human craft.
Cultural context
The blacksmith as a symbol of human craft and effort appears frequently in Polish folk proverbs. The contrast with God's gift emphasises that some things are beyond human power to create.
Intermediate
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