ProverbWisdom
French origin16th c.
French origin16th c.Fine feathers make fine birds.
Meaning: Outward appearance and presentation significantly influence how others perceive and judge our worth and capabilities.
Origin: The saying came from French, where les belles plumes font les beaux oiseaux is recorded early in the 16th century, and it reached English later that century. It observes, with some irony, that fine clothes make a person look important — whatever lies underneath. Aesop's fable of the jackdaw that dressed in peacock feathers makes the opposite point.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Italian, and 3 more languages
French: La belle plume fait le bel oiseau (literally: Fine feathers make fine birds)
Spanish: Como te ven, te tratan (literally: As they see you, so they treat you)
Japanese: 馬子にも衣装 (Mako ni mo ishō) (literally: Even a packhorse driver looks fine in good clothes)
German: Kleider machen Leute (literally: Clothes make people)
Italian: Vesti un ciocco, pare un fiocco (literally: Dress up a log and it looks like a bow)
Dutch: De kleren maken de man (literally: Clothes make the man)
Polish: Jak cię widzą, tak cię piszą (literally: As they see you, so they describe you)
Korean: 옷이 날개라 (Osi nalgaera) (literally: Clothes are wings)
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