This is the first annotated dictionary of Chicano proverbs to be published, and the first to use standard folklore methodology. It is the result of a study of Mexican American folklore and folklife in the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, a major area of demographic and cultural concentration. Often called the wisdom of the folk, proverbs are perceived as traditional sayings with roots in oral folklore, and as such are considered useful as a way of making a potentially profound and culturally appropriate statement in a common but difficult human situation.