<P> It takes a village to raise a child is an African proverb which means that it takes an entire community of different people interacting with children in order for a child to experience and grow in a safe environment . The villages would look out for the children . This does not mean an entire village is responsible for raising your children and / or the children of a crowd . </P> <P> The proverb has been attributed to African cultures . In 2016, NPR decided to research the origins of the proverb and concluded it was unable to pinpoint its origins, though academics said the proverb nevertheless holds the true spirits of some African cultures . </P>

It takes the whole village to educate a child