Who said it takes a village to raise a child meaning

Re Yvette's query about a source for the saying "it takes a village to raise a child:" The book she hoped would contain the quote, does not. There are several stories and plays that could well contain such a sentiment, but which do not. Who said 'It takes a whole village to raise a child? I haven't seen the book. Presumably Zona doesn't give it an African provenience there!

I think when the question came up at Dartmouth, the patron had seen a poster attributing the quote as a generic African saying. Date: Thu, 13 Jul X-Sender: mbrady merle. This thread is the most interesting one we've had in a while!!! Mary Brady Catalog Dept. Library Evanston, IL m-brady nwu. What fun! I should have realized from title that Ademola would NOT have it. In any event, the NA Indian attribution sounds good; I have yet to check if we have it. Onward indeed! Many thanks. My experience is parallel.

I personally think it was made up by someone, and isn't a proverb per se. If anyone comes up with any sort of definitive origin, we should all file it in our ready-ref FAQ. Maddy seems to accept the proverb as African. Perhaps he or Cowen-Fletcher have the real provenance? I suppose I'm being ultra cynical but cd it be a green beret slogan and 'raise' shd be 'raze'??

X-UIDL: Proverb or not, "It takes a whole village to raise a child" reflects a social reality some of us who grew up in rural areas of Africa can easily relate to. As a child, my conduct was a concern of everybody, not just my parents, especially if it involved misconduct.

Any adult had the right to rebuke and discipline me and would make my mischief known to my parents who in turn would also mete their own "punishment. We may have entered the age of the invention of proverbs.

A student turned in a paper the other day that began with the following:. The sentiment seems to be, if Africans don't have it as a proverb, they should! Regarding the proverb, a friend of mine kicked it around and couldn't find a reference before in Chicago. Re: "It takes a village His wife is an Ethiopian from Addis , but I think it more likely that he was inspired to designate it an "Ethiopian" aphorism to lend it authenticity.

I have tried to figure what the original language might have said. I have collected a fair number of Amharic tiret and never come across this one.

I find it a reasonable and profound statement about collective social responsibility, but perhaps not traceable to a specific origin. Jim McCann Boston University.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the search for the proper village. Keep us all posted of further developments. I grew up in Detroit, Michigan. In my neighborhood the houses were side-by-side along a city block. Our block was a "village" when I was growing up.

Old Mr. Johnson, who lived across the street monitored our activities throughout the day while my single-parent mother worked. If we got too rowdy, Mr. Johnson would get us in line from his front porch. We knew that we were loved and protected.

How do we re-embrace that aspect of community that makes us feel loved and protected, in the 21st century? Furthermore, how do we incorporate information gained from "paradigm shifting" and "consciousness raising" so that we don't damage the psyche of the individual?

While the experts are finding out the source, I am pondering the reason that this phrase keeps circulating around the planet. Netters: I seem to remember a proverb with virtually the same translation as that given by Eddy Bay's student. I recall it appearing in a pamphlet of Maasai Wisdom or something like this published in the mid to late s. Focus on the big picture by recognizing that people parent in different ways but the ultimate goal is to raise happy, healthy children. Getting hung up on differences such as appropriate consequences can lead to additional division rather than support.

No two parents will likely agree about how to handle every situation involving a child, but accepting that there are numerous ways to parent is important. If you know the family and feel comfortable, offer to set up a carpool system or swap babysitting services. Thirty minutes of child-free house cleaning can be a huge support to a parent and not overly burdensome for you. Parents have a very important job, and supporting fellow parents will only lead to positives for our neighborhoods, schools and communities.

The feeling that a village must help in raising a child is more about the values, responsibilities and life lessons that the village must share and not only about helicopter parents getting help from the village.

But how do we go back to relying on our village to help truly raise our children from a values and reliability standpoint for the child? First, choose your village wisely. When we chose the town where we are currently raising our four children, the first thing that stood out about the town was that kids were walking around downtown… alone.

The downtown was always bustling and yes, there were really happy kids out without family members, riding bikes, grabbing ice cream etc. We chose a house that was a few blocks from this quaint downtown, for walkability and community. Trust me, there was nothing Pinterest worthy about the house: I chose the village not the kitchen backsplash.

Let the village in. This is what is so hard for many. Let another person reprimand my kid? No way! If we never let anyone else help in raising and teaching and more importantly correcting good behavior to our children, how will they ever care and respect their peers, their job, etc over their years?

How will they react to different opinions if the only opinion they are ever raised to respect is that of their parents? Teach kids to have an open mind with various people correcting and reprimanding to avoid behavior problems in the near future.

Spend more time in the village, less in the car. If you want the village to help raise your child, spend more time in it. From birthday parties to soccer camps, I feel like my kids are invited to things further from home all the time. Need soccer training for your kids?

Ask a high school soccer player to help. Going out to dinner? Pick a spot in your town. Want to do something as a family on the weekend? Ride bikes around your own town. It does take a village to raise good children, so give them more time in their village. For me, this is the most important part.

Next time you need an ingredient for a recipe? Borrow it from a neighbor and send your child over to get it. This is one of the simplest yet impactful ways for a child to rely on a village.