A dictionary of Proverbs (Oxford Paperback Reference)

The NAIL that sticks up gets hammered down
Japanese proverb.

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  1972 J. HOHENBERG New Era in Pacific 145 It will be a long time before the Japanese give up faith in the group creed: ‘The nail that sticks up must be hammered down.’ 1982 K. OHMAE Mind of Strategist 228 Whenever I wanted to do my own thing, I was constantly reminded that the nail that sticks up gets hammered down. 1997 New York Times 1 Aug. (online) Of course, Mr. Irabu still has time to redeem himself. And his lack of obvious humility—a handicap in his homeland, where an old proverb holds that ‘the nail that sticks up gets hammered down’—can be an asset here. 2007 J. HUIZENGA ‘Ten Tips for Teaching English as a Foreign Language’ on www.transitionsabroad.com In classrooms outside the U.S., however, showing solidarity with classmates.. is often more important than looking good for the teacher.. This holds true in Japan and China,.. where proverbs express the cultural idea in a nutshell:.. ‘The nail that stands up must be pounded down.’ ■ action and consequence; pride
  

nail see when all you have is a HAMMER, everything looks like a nail; ONE nail drives out another; for WANT of a nail the shoe was lost.
name see give a DOG a bad name and hang him; he that has an ILL name is half hanged; NO names, no pack-drill.
A NATION without a language is a nation without a heart
Welsh proverb; for the Irish equivalent see quot. 2007 and cf. the remark of Irish patriot Thomas Davis (1814-45): ‘A people without a language of its own is only half a nation’ (’Our National Language’).

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  1917 Zionist Review 110 It is recognized that a nation without a language is like a body without a soul. 1972 Proceedings of the Institute on Narcotic Addition among Mexican Americans in the South West As one great citizen of this world said, ‘A country without a language is like a country without a heart.’ 1993 B. THOMAS Industrial Revolution and Atlantic Economy 229 The striking leveling-off in the rate of decline
  

between 1971 and 1981 is a great tribute to the wholehearted labours of thousands of Welsh patriots who have made the language the centre-piece of the national effort. Cenedl heb iaith, cenedl heb gallon. A nation without a language is a nation without a heart. 2007 posting 11 Feb. on anthropology.net In Ireland we have a saying ’Tir gan teanga, tir gan anam’ a country without a language is a country without a soul. The same applies to a people. ■ national characteristics