ProverbWisdom
Spanish origin
Spanish originDonde fueres, haz lo que vieres
Meaning: Follow the customs of the place you are in.
Literally: Where you go, do what you see
Example: “Aquí se cena a las diez; donde fueres, haz lo que vieres.” — Here people have dinner at ten: when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Equivalents in English, French, Japanese, German, Italian, and 5 more languages
English: When in Rome, do as the Romans do
French: À Rome, fais comme les Romains (literally: In Rome, do as the Romans)
Japanese: 郷に入っては郷に従え (Gō ni itte wa gō ni shitagae) (literally: When entering a village, follow the village)
German: Andere Länder, andere Sitten (literally: Other countries, other customs)
Italian: Paese che vai, usanza che trovi (literally: Every country you go to, a custom you find)
Portuguese: Em Roma sê romano (literally: In Rome, be Roman)
Dutch: 's Lands wijs, 's lands eer (literally: The country's ways are the country's honor)
Russian: В чужой монастырь со своим уставом не ходят (V chuzhoy monastyr' so svoim ustavom ne khodyat) (literally: You don't bring your own rulebook to someone else's monastery)
Polish: Kiedy wejdziesz między wrony, musisz krakać jak i one (literally: When you go among crows, you must caw like them)
Chinese: 入乡随俗 (Rù xiāng suí sú) (literally: Entering a village, follow its customs)
Origin: The old future subjunctives fueres and vieres give it its rhyme and its age. The advice goes back to Saint Ambrose, who, as Augustine reports, fasted on Saturdays in Rome but not in Milan.
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