como sardiñas en banastra

Galician

Como sardiñas en banastra (packed like sardines)

Etymology

Attested since the 19th century. Literally, "like sardines in the basket".

Adjective

como sardiñas en banastra

1. (idiomatic, simile) packed like sardines
   • 1884, O tío Marcos da Portela, volume 2, number 45, page 1:

     na compaña dos meus bos amigos Benito das Vacalouras e Martiño de Zamora, metínme nun deses wagós do camiño de ferro d'Ourense a Vigo, i anque fumos nel como sardiñas en banasta, non tivemos queixa, porque neso da comparanza das sardiñas, nosoutros éramos das cabezudas, i as que levábamos á beira eran das escochadas, frescas e pequerrechiñas e cun sal

     in the company of my good friends Benito das Vacalouras and Martiño from Zamora, I entered one of those wagons of the train from Ourense to Vigo and, even if we travelled packed as sardines, we had no complaint, because on that comparison we were as sardines with head, but those next to us were as headless sardines, fresh and small and salted

References

• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “como sardiñas en banastra”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega