All 50 State Mottos, Ranked... There Will Be Latin
By Jeremy Glass and Ethan Wolff-Mann
It had to be done! After tearing apart every U.S. state and ranking them by their flags, license plates, and shapes, we decided to take another whack at it and get really real and rank their state mottos. Some of them are only a word long, others are entirely in Latin, and Texas is just trolling.
Here’s our extremely definitive list.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
50. Maryland
“Fatti maschii, parole femine” (Manly deeds womanly words)
“Crabcakes and football, that’s what Maryland does!” Oh, and severe sexism in its original Italian.
Related: Ranking All 50 U.S. State Flags From Worst to Best (Sorry, Maryland)
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
49. Delaware
“Liberty and Independence”
This is a real C+ effort for the very first damn state of the union. This isn’t a motto, these are just two nouns with a conjunction in the middle. COME ON, DELAWARE! YOU WERE THE CHOSEN ONE.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
48. Utah
“Industry”
Do you even give a crap, Utah?!
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
47. Alaska
“North to the Future”
The sentiment is there, but there’s just a bit too much nerdiness infused. Can’t you just see a chubby A/V kid shouting this at the top of his lungs?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
46. Indiana
“The Crossroads of America”
This is not so much a motto as much as it is a statement – they could have just as well written “We’re a state!” on their flag.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
45. Arizona
“Ditat Deus” (God Enriches)
God enriches what? Can you finish the sentence? Please and thank you.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
44. California
“Eureka” (I have found it)
I get it, there’s gold in your dirt. LET IT GO.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
43. Maine
“Dirigo” (I direct)
GO ON…?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
42. Wisconsin
“Forward”
You stick with your one-word motto and we’ll stick to only paying attention to the Badgers when they win.
Credit: Flickr/Dave
41. Florida
“In God We Trust”
Nice try. God left Florida a long time ago.
Related: The Most Ridiculous Landmarks in All 50 States
Credit: Flickr/Seattle Municipal Archives
40. Washington
“Al-ki” (Bye and Bye)
I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel about Washington’s state motto.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
39. Idaho
“Esto perpetua” (Let it be Perpetual)
Who wrote this? My eighth grade vice principal? BACK OF THE LINE.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
38. Illinois
“State Sovereignty, National Union”
Can you really have it both ways, Illinois?
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
37. Montana
“Oro y plata” (Gold and Silver)
What’s that old saying? If you have to say you’re rich, you’re probably not.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
36. Louisiana
“Union, Justice, and Confidence”
This is the modified version from the original “Union, Justice, Confidence” and the setting of the 1982 thriller Swamp Thing.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
35. Missouri
“Salus populi suprema lex esto” (The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law)
Bet those Missouri Republicans are all kinds of angry about this one.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
34. North Carolina
“Esse quam videri” (To be, rather than to seem)
Shocking poignancy from the state that gave birth to Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
33. Michigan
“Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam circumspice” (If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you)
The kind of explanatory motto that was probably written an hour before it was due. That’s like California’s motto being: “We are really far west!”
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
32. New Jersey
“Liberty and Prosperity”
Did Jersey get this one from a state motto generator online?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
31. Ohio
“With God, all things are possible”
Not even going to touch this one.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
30. Kansas
“Per aspera ad astra” (To the stars through difficulties)
They tried to ratify the original script of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat as the motto, but the governor vetoed it for being too long.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
29. Virginia
“Sic semper tyrannis” (Thus Always to Tyrants)
It’s not very often that the last words Abraham Lincoln heard define an entire state, but here we are.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
28. South Dakota
“Under God the people rule”
Is this a fact or a warning? What happens if no one wants to rule?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
27. Connecticut
“Qui transtulit sustinet” (He who is transplanted still sustains)
Call me crazy or biased, but I think this Latin motto refers to all the brave Connecticut men who’ve bravely traversed the state, into new territories, and become transplants into Manhattan. Good for us.
Credit: Flickr/Cas
26. Iowa
“Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain”
However, they neither prize nor maintain a good motto.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
25. Oklahoma
“Labor omnia vincit” (Labor conquers all things)
What a wonderful and naive motto.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
24. Texas
“Friendship”
Wait, Texas’s state motto is “Friendship?” They don’t have any friends! I can’t decide if this is way cool or a total cop-out.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
23. Minnesota
“L'Etoile du Nord” (The star of the north)
And all before the Mall of America was built!
Credit: Flickr/Pamla J. Eisenberg
22. New York
“Excelsior”
Nerd alert.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
21. Georgia
“Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation”
Note: the ‘Moderation’ portion of this state motto was added after the state governor died from a fresh peach overdose.
Related: The Worst Stereotypes About Every U.S. State
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
20. Pennsylvania
“Virtue, Liberty, and Independence”
Pennsylvania just took the best parts from the Pledge of Allegiance and added “virtue” on the front. I could do that! Hell, I will do that.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
19. Rhode Island
“Hope”
Alrighty.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
18. Colorado
“Nil sine numine” (Nothing without the Deity)
This sounds vaguely like a Boyz II Men song. Is this a Boyz II Men song? We suspect “deity” is slang for something big and juicy.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
17. Mississippi
“Virtute et armis” (By valor and arms)
There’s an old-timey southern elegance and arrogance about Mississippi’s motto that almost makes you forget about all that secession stuff. Almost.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
16. Oregon
“Alis Volat Propriis” (She Flies With Her Own Wings)
Who’s this woman? Where did she get those wings?! Red Bull?
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
15. Tennessee
“Agriculture and Commerce”
Gotta love Tennessee for taking the two things that make their state money and just sticking them together.
Credit: Flickr/Pamla J. Eisenberg
14. Wyoming
“Equal rights”
According to the HRC, they have a decent rating. But they could improve. Heck, we all could.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
13. South Carolina
“Dum spiro spero / Animis opibusque parati” (While I breathe, I hope / Prepared in mind and resources)
THEY HAVE TWO!
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
12. Nevada
“All for our country”
They put their chips all in and it’s totally devoid of crap, unlike the bottoms of their cowboy boots.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
11. New Mexico
“Crescit eundo” (It grows as it goes)
I mean, I can’t be the only one who hears… well, you know, right? I mean, am I crazy? Well done, Little Mexico!
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
10. Alabama
“Audemus jura nostra defendere” (We Dare Defend our Rights)
I want to believe you, Alabama – but you’re Alabama and have historically let things slide… human rights, for instance. Still a strong motto though.
Credit: Flickr/nosha
9. Hawaii
“Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Aina i ka Pono” (The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness)
Is this where surfers got “righteous” from?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
8. Massachusetts
“Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem” (By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty)
This is actually scarily accurate – Massachusetts folks will happily punch you in the face to prove their point.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
7. Vermont
“Freedom and Unity”
There’s so much freedom and unity in Vermont that people can go weeks without working without the man giving them hell. Go Vermont!
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
6. North Dakota
“Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable”
This is awesome, but can anyone point out North Dakota on a map?
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
5. Arkansas
“Regnat populus” (The People Rule)
Surprisingly bold and in your face – what else would you expect from the Bill Clinton state?
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
4. West Virginia
“Montani semper liberi” (Mountaineers are always free)
This one is fantastic – it’s as if they always knew lumbersexuality would be all the rage in 2015.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
3. Kentucky
“United we stand, divided we fall”
All I can think about is a big box of KFC uniting a family as they divide the pieces.
Credit: Flickr/Boston Public Library
2. New Hampshire
“Live Free or Die”
This is the motto every other state wishes they thought of first. Some have come close, but no one’s quite gotten there.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
1. Nebraska
“Equality before the law”
There’s something especially tough about Nebraska’s diehard call for equality. They’re willing to go to jail for what they believe in, whether it’s the right to bear arms or marry a stalk of corn.
More from Supercompressor/Thrillist:
The Weirdest Roadside Attraction in Every State
What Every US State Is the Best At
The Most Bizarre Building in All 50 States
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