U.S STATE MOTTOS
BONUS! REJECTED U.S. State Mottos
The wonderful mosaic which is America is composed of fifty states--which have 52 state mottos (South Carolina and Kentucky have two).
With further fanfare, here they are, broken down in three main categories.
U.S. STATES MOTTOES
FREEDOM, LIBERTY and the RULE OF THE PEOPLE
15 States
ALABAMA | ""Audemus Jura Nostra Defendere" | We Dare Defend Our Rights |
| ARKANSAS | "Regnat populus" | The People Rule |
| DELAWARE | --- | "Liberty and Independence" |
| IOWA | --- | "Our Liberties We Prize and Our Rights We Will Maintain" |
| MASSACHUSETTS | "Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem" | By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty |
| MISSISSIPPI | "Virtute et armis" | By valor and arms |
| MISSOURI | "Salus populi suprema lex esto" | The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law |
| NEW HAMPSHIRE | --- | "Live Free or Die" |
| NEW JERSEY | --- | "Liberty and Prosperity" |
| NORTH DAKOTA | --- | "Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable" |
| PENNSYLVANIA | --- | "Virtue, Liberty, and Independence" |
| SOUTH DAKOTA | --- | "Under God the people rule" |
| VERMONT | --- | "Freedom and unity" |
| VIRGINIA | "Sic Semper Tyrannis" | Thus Always to Tyrants |
| WEST VIRGINIA | "Montani semper liberi" | Mountaineers are always free |
GOD and COUNTRY
5 States
| ARIZONA | --- | "God enriches" |
| COLORADO | "Nil Sine Numine" | Nothing Without the Deity |
| FLORIDA | --- | "In God We Trust" |
| KENTUCKY | "Deo gratiam habeamus" | "Let us be grateful to God" |
| OHIO | --- | "With God, all things are possible" |
OTHER IDEAS
30 States
| ALASKA | --- | "North to the Future" |
| CONNECTICUT | "Qui Transtulit Sustinet" | He who transplanted continues to sustain |
| CALIFORNIA | "Eureka" | "I have found it |
| GEORGIA | --- | "Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation" "Agriculture and Commerce" |
| HAWAII | "Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Aina i ka Pono" | "The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness" |
| IDAHO | "Esto Perpetua" | "Let it be Perpetual" |
| ILLINOIS | --- | "State Sovereignty; National Union" |
| INDIANA | --- | "The Crossroads of America" |
| KANSAS | "Ad Astra Per Aspera" | "To the Stars Through Difficulties" |
| KENTUCKY | English motto | "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" |
| LOUISIANA | --- | "Union, Justice, Confidence" |
| MAINE | "Dirigo" | "I Direct" (or I Guide) |
| MARYLAND | "Fatti Maschii Parole Femine" | "manly deeds, womanly words" |
| MICHIGAN | "Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam, circumspice" | "If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you." |
| MINNESOTA | "L'Etoile du nord" | "The star of the north" |
| MONTANA | "Oro y plata" | "Gold and Silver" |
| NEBRASKA | --- | "Equality Before the Law" |
| NEVADA | --- | "All for our country" |
| NEW MEXICO | "Crescit eundo" | "It grows as it goes" |
| NEW YORK | "Excelsior" | "Ever Upward" |
| NORTH CAROLINA | "Esse quam videri" | "To be, rather than to seem" |
| OKLAHOMA | "Labor omnia vincit" | "Labor conquers all things" |
| OREGON | "Alis Volat Propiis" | "She Flies With Her Own Wings" |
| RHODE ISLAND | --- | "Hope" |
| SOUTH CAROLINA | "Animis Opibusque Parati" | "Prepared in mind and resources" |
| SOUTH CAROLINA | "Dum Spiro Spero" | "While I breathe, I hope" |
| TENNESSEE | --- | "Agriculture and Commerce" |
| TEXAS | --- | "Friendship" |
| UTAH | --- | "Industry" |
| WASHINGTON | "Al-ki or Alki" | "Bye and Bye" or "Hope for the Future" |
| WISCONSIN | --- | "Forward" |
| WYOMING | --- | "Equal Rights" |
[ABOVE: Census map of US; mostly unrelated to this article.]
Some Rejected State Mottos
We found these at Do you like your state motto?
Alabama: Yes, we really do have electricity.
Alaska: Yeah, But It's a Dry Cold.
Arizona: But It's a Dry Heat
Arkansas: Literacy Ain't Everything
California: By 30, Our Women Have More Plastic Than Your Honda
Colorado: If You Don't Ski, Don't Bother
Connecticut: Like Massachusetts, Only The Kennedys Don't Own It Yet
Delaware: We Really Do Like The Chemicals In Our Water
Florida: Ask Us About Our Grandkids
Georgia: We Put The "Fun" In Fundamentalist Extremism
Hawaii: Haka Tiki Mou Sha'ami Leeki Toru (Death To Mainland Scum, But Leave Your Money)
Idaho: More Than Just Potatoes. Well Okay, Not Really, But The Potatoes Sure Are Real Good
Illinois: Please Don't Pronounce the "S"
Indiana: 2 Billion Years Tidal Wave Free
Iowa: We Do Amazing Things with Corn
Kansas: First of the Rectangle States
Kentucky: Five Million People; Fifteen Last Names
Louisiana: We're Not ALL Drunk Cajun Wackos, but That's Our Tourism Campaign
Maine: We're Really Cold, but We Have Cheap Lobster
Maryland: If You Can Dream It, We Can Tax It
Massachusetts: Our Taxes are Lower Than Sweden's
Michigan: First Line of Defense From the Canadians
Minnesota: 10,000 Lakes And 10,000,000,000,000 Mosquitoes
The other 27 states at the link. Not included are personal favorites for Wisconsin: "Eat Cheese or Die"; and, Florida: "The Plywood State".
There's also a lot more rejected state mottos at Top 276 Rejected State Mottos, where the reader will find these gems:
* Maryland: We've got crabs!
* California: The cereal State: nothing but fruits, nuts and flakes
* Maryland The Other Alabama
* Michigan: Home of Hell
* West Virginia: Mountains, Rednecks and Football!
This is probably more than readers wanted to know about accepted and rejected state mottos, but it's a slow news day.
by Mondo Frazier
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Sources:
* US Official State Mottos
* List of U.S. state and territory mottos
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