Which came first, the saying or the book?

Question

In the book "Of mice and men" by John Steinback, the plot deeply expresses the saying "the best laid plans of mice and men often go array." But with came first, the book or the saying?

Answer 1

The original saying was written in Scots Gaelic, which is similar to but different from English, and it reads: "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley." The saying came first. It comes from the poem "To a Mouse," by Robert Burns, 1785. Follow the link below for the original poem, and a modern English translation.

Answer 2

It's from a poem by Robbie Burns, who lived in Scotland in the 18th (I think) century.

He wrote in Scots dialect, something like:

The best-laid plans o' mice and men
gang oft agly


Something about a mousehole he plugged up around the same time his wife gave birth to twins (which I guess were even harder to deal with then than now).

Answer 3

the saying, from Mr Robert Burns of Scotland orgin.....and the first two posters have it dead on.

-- from a old scot at heart :)