Provençal expression

la luno es fousco, deman o plòu o boufo

Nature

Literal translation

The moon is hazy, tomorrow it rains or it blows.

Meaning

when the moon is hazy, tomorrow brings rain or wind

Explanation

This weather-forecasting saying rests on the empirical observation of a halo or haze around the moon, described by the adjective fousco, hazy or murky, a sign traditionally linked to an approaching change in weather. The structure deman o plòu o boufo, tomorrow it either rains or it blows, does not settle between two possible outcomes, rain or wind, but simply announces that the current calm is about to break. This kind of observation belongs to a folk meteorology built on centuries of outdoor life, particularly attentive to signs in the sky in a region where the mistral wind and rainy spells strongly mark the climate. The saying belongs to a broader family of forecasts drawn from the behaviour of stars, animals, or plants, a family that also includes the saying about gulls coming ashore. It is used in ordinary register, often at the very moment one is watching the evening sky, to warn anyone listening of a coming change in weather.

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Other expressions on the same theme

fai lou tèms di damothe weather is mild and fickle fai soulèu à la Santo-Baumothe sun is shining over la Sainte-Baume quand li gabian vènon en terro, marco de marrit tèmswhen gulls come ashore, bad weather is coming fai un fre de loupit's bitterly cold fai fre que peloit's a freezing, biting cold fai un caud ensucantit's a dazing, heavy heat