التاجر لما يفلس يدور فى دفاتره القديمة
El tager lamma yefalles yedawwar fi dafatroh el qadimah
Translation: A bankrupt merchant goes over his old records (to look for uncollected bills).
Meaning: If someone is trying to collect an old debt, or revive assets that were long ignored, it means that they are in financial straits. The imagery is colourful, denoting a single family business, and a man who keeps his own books. It also conjures images of shops with old signs in gilded calligraphy, and more modest forms of display. You may still hear this proverb used in a light-hearted way by a friend who wants to get back the sweater you borrowed from him last year and conveniently forgot to return.
Source: Egyptian Proverbs, (Al-Ahram Center for Translation and Publishing, 1986) by Ahmed Taymour Pasha,
Translated by: Nabil Shawkat
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