one swallow does not a summer make

English

Alternative forms

• one swallow does not a spring make
• one swallow does not make a spring
• one swallow does not make a summer
• one swallow doesn't a spring make
• one swallow doesn't a summer make
• one swallow doesn't make a spring
• one swallow doesn't make a summer

Etymology

Calque of Ancient Greek μία χελιδὼν ἔαρ οὐ ποιεῖ (mía khelidṑn éar ou poieî), part of a remark found in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics (1098a18: “one swallow does not a spring make, nor one fine day; similarly one day or brief time of happiness does not make a person entirely happy”), itself inspired by the fable The Young Man and the Swallow by Aesop.

The proverb is an allusion to the migration of swallows to Europe during spring. The unexpected translation of ἔαρ (éar) (meaning "spring") as "summer" seen in English is also encountered in many other languages, such as Dutch een zwaluw maakt nog geen zomer and German eine Schwalbe macht noch keinen Sommer (note the descendants at the Ancient Greek entry).

The unusual English word order (in use from circa 1920) may be intended to reflect the Greek word order, or it may be influenced by the line “Stone walls do not a prison make,” from To Althea, from Prison by Richard Lovelace (1642).

Proverb

one swallow does not a summer make

1. One instance of an event (such as the arrival of a single bird) does not necessarily indicate a trend.
   • 1886, Louisa M[ay] Alcott, chapter 9, in Jo's Boys […] ‎^[1], Boston: Roberts Brothers:

     [T]hough one swallow does not make a summer, one engagement is apt to make several, and her boys were, most of them, at the inflammable age when a spark ignites the flame[.]

   • 1921 April 4, “Smile a While”, in The Day‎^[2], retrieved 29 November 2011, page 6:

     One swallow does not a summer make, nor one onion a spring garden.

   • 1969 September 19, Bob Johnson, “Sports: September Madness”, in Spokane Daily Chronicle‎^[3], page 15:

     One swallow does not a summer make and one football game doesn't make a season.

   • 2001 June 24, Susan Tifft, “The Philippines: Now the Hard Part”, in Time‎^[4], archived from the original on 12 August 2009:

     Added one Western diplomat: "Aquino's success undoubtedly weakens the Communists' appeal to the so-called mass base. But one swallow does not a summer make."

Translations

one instance of an event does not necessarily indicate a trend

• Armenian: մի ծաղկով գարուն չի գա (mi caġkov garun čʻi ga)
• Bulgarian: една птичка пролет не прави (edna ptička prolet ne pravi)
• Catalan: una flor no fa estiu
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 一燕不成夏 (yīyànbùchéngxià), 孤燕不成夏 (gūyànbùchéngxià), 獨燕不成夏／独燕不成夏 (dúyānbùchéngxià)

• Czech: jedna vlaštovka jaro nedělá (cs)
• Danish: én svale gør ingen sommer
• Dutch: een zwaluw maakt nog geen lente, een zwaluw maakt nog geen zomer, één ooievaar maakt nog geen zomer, één zwaluw maakt de lente niet (Belgium)
• Esperanto: unu kukolo printempon ne venigas
• Finnish: ei yksi pääsky kesää tee
• French: une hirondelle ne fait pas le printemps (fr)
• Galician: unha anduriña soa non fai verán
• Georgian: ერთი ენძელა გაზაფხულს ვერ მოიყვანს (erti enʒela gazapxuls ver moiq̇vans)
• German: eine Schwalbe macht noch keinen Sommer (de), einmal ist keinmal
• Greek: ένα χελιδόνι δεν φέρνει την άνοιξη (éna chelidóni den férnei tin ánoixi)

  Ancient: μία χελιδὼν ἔαρ οὐ ποιεῖ (mía khelidṑn éar ou poieî)

• Hungarian: egy fecske nem csinál nyarat (hu)
• Italian: una rondine non fa primavera
• Korean: 한 마리의 제비가 왔다고 봄이 온 것은 아니다 (han mariui jebiga watdago bomi on geoseun anida)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: én svale gjør ingen sommer (no)

  Nynorsk: ein svale gjer ingen sommar

• Polish: jedna jaskółka wiosny nie czyni (pl)
• Portuguese: uma andorinha só não faz verão (pt) (Brazil)
• Romanian: cu o floare nu se face primăvară
• Russian: пе́рвая ла́сточка весны́ не де́лает (pérvaja lástočka vesný ne délajet)
• Scottish Gaelic: cha dèan aon smeòrach samhradh
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: једна ласта не чини прољеће

  Roman: jedna lasta ne čini proljeće

• Spanish: una golondrina no hace verano (es) f
• Swedish: en svala gör ingen sommar
• Vietnamese: một con nhạn không làm nên mùa xuân, một con én không làm nên mùa xuân
• Welsh: un wennol ni wna wanwyn

See also

• X does not a Y make (snowclone)

Anagrams

• one swallow does not make a summer