# Mottos (state) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 25, 2001, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529 "2001-10-25T13:42:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2001, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/21 "2001-10-25T19:11:57Z")
Ha. Florida has a state _soil_ - Myakka fine sand. Top(soil) that! ---
**Author:** ![Zappo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b3f665/32.png) [@Zappo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zappo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2001, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/22 "2001-10-25T19:24:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Politzania \* > \*\*And while I’m here: > Flower: Peony (adopted 1957) > Bird: Cardinal (adopted 1933) > Tree: Tulip Tree (adopted 1931) > Stone (OK this is going a bit far): Limestone (adopted 1971) > There’s a poem & a song too… > > My favorite motto for Indiana: > “Indiana: Keeping Lake Michigan out of Kentucky since 1816” \*\* These are the symbols of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania according to the December 1999 _Pennsylvania Manual_: Flower: Mountain Laurel (1933) Tree: Hemlock (1931) Bird: Ruffed Grouse (1931) Animal: Whitetail Deer (1959) \ Dog: Great Dane (1980) Fish: Brook Trout (1970) Song: “Pennsylvania” (1990) Insect: Firefly {no, not **RT** } (1974) Beverage: Milk (1982) Flagship: US Brig _Niagra_ (1988) Conservation and beautification plant: _Penngift crownvetch_ (1982) Fossil: _Phaecops rana_ (1988) Steam Locomotive: PA Railroad K4s (1987) Electric Locomotive: PA Railroad GG1 Number 4859 (1987) Zap ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2001, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/23 "2001-10-25T20:43:42Z")
I’ve always wondered about Puerto Rico’s motto. {url=“[http://www.50states.com/puerto.htm](http://www.50states.com/puerto.htm)”]‘Iohannes est nomen eius’ in Latin or ‘Juan es su nombre’ in Spanish., which means John is his name. Wha-ha? ---
**Author:** ![45ACP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/e5b9ba/32.png) [@45ACP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/45ACP)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2001, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/24 "2001-10-25T20:56:17Z")
It represents the name of John the Baptist– [http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/Shores/8070/shield.htm](http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/Shores/8070/shield.htm) [Monty Python]Do what, John; do what John; come again, do what{/Monty Python] ---
**Author:** ![Creaky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@Creaky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creaky)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2001, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/25 "2001-10-25T21:05:03Z")
Yeah, the state motto for Maryland is real. I think it drew some fire recently, actually. The state sport is jousting, can you beat that? Heh. Pretty funky. The state song is great, too. You sing it to the tune of “Oh, Christmas Tree”. I don’t think that’s very popular these days either, though. ---
**Author:** ![Zoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/6de8d8/32.png) [@Zoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoff)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/26 "2001-10-26T00:59:31Z")
The Maryland motto is being changed. It, obviously, took some heat for being sexist. The _Washington Post_ ran a reader’s contest to come up with a new motto. The winners were: Maryland – Wait! We can explain. Maryland – It looks better in the dark. As you can tell, the contest wasn’t entirely serious. I like Virginia’s motto: Sic Semper Tyrannis – Thus Always to Tyrants, accompanied by a picture of the goddess Virtus holding a spear standing on the dead body of a Tyrant whose crown has been knocked off his head. Beautiful. ---
**Author:** ![ThunderBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@ThunderBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThunderBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/27 "2001-10-26T01:22:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zappo \* > Pennsylvania’s is “Virtue, Liberty and Independence.” > > Our tourism slogan is “Pennsylvania Memories Last a Lifetime.”\*\* Actually, I thought this was changed fairly recently (like in the last 2 years). The new one is “Pennsylvania: America Starts Here!” They’ve posted it on all the interstates as you cross the state lines. More than a little weird, I think. Like, if you’re leaving Maryland and entering PA, guess what - you were never really in America yet. America just started here. And it’s not like we have any substantial coastline or anything… just a really weird slogan. I’m sure it refers to the historical happenings in Philadelphia, but hey that was 200 years ago. Maybe if they say “America Started Here”. But then, this is the same state that used “You’ve got a friend in Pennsylvania”, one of the only gramatically incorrect slogans in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Creaky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@Creaky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creaky)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/28 "2001-10-26T01:22:58Z")
Well, I like the Maryland motto, quite honestly. It’s old- fashioned, and probably not PC, but it doesn’t bother me. It’s kind of cool that it _is_ so blatantly old-fashioned. A little glimpse of history, as it were. ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/29 "2001-10-26T01:37:47Z")
Michigan has some unofficial state mottos, too… Michigan: Where We Only Have Two Seasons–Winter and Construction. Michigan: Where You Ask For Ginger Ale, And Expect Vernors. Michigan: Will The Last Person Out Of The State Please Turn Off The Lights? _–Persephone, Michigan Born, Michigan Raised, and still stuck here…_ ---
**Author:** ![meyer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@meyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meyer)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/30 "2001-10-26T01:58:28Z")
This talk of changing mottos reminds me of when I was living in Saskatchewan, where the licence plate motto was “The Wheat Province”, which seemed descriptive enough. When the government decided to change it, the paper held a contest for a new motto. The winners: Saskatchewan: It’s a dry cold. Saskatchewan: A place where no man can jump to his death. Saskatchewan: Yours to drive through. Saskatchewan: We are all related! My personal favorite: Saskatchewan: Sorry about that. They changed the motto to “Land of the Living Skies” though, which means absolutely nothing to anybody. Sorry about the hijack, as you were. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/31 "2001-10-26T02:00:26Z")
North Carolina’s motto is “To be rather than to seem.” I can’t remember what the Latin translation is though. A few [rejected state mottoes](http://www.thebigshow.com/BITPAGES/BADMOTTO.HTM). 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/32 "2001-10-26T04:10:36Z")
> [@](#): > > California: I have found it (est?) Ummm…what does “(est?)” mean? Like, “established”? I’m not sure I get it. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/33 "2001-10-26T04:55:27Z")
Canada: A mari usque ad mare (From sea to sea) Ontario: Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet (Loyal she began and loyal she remains) Quebec: Je me souviens (I remember) Nova Scotia: Munit haec et altera vincit (One leads and the other conquers) New Brunswick: Spem reduxit (Hope was restored - refers to Loyalists who settled in NB after quitting the US during the Revolution) British Columbia: Splendor sine occasu (Splendour without diminishment) PEI: Parva sub ingenti (The small under the protection of the great) Saskatchewan: Multis e gentibus, vires (From many peoples, strength) Alberta: Fortis et liber (Strong and free) Newfoundland: Quaerite prime regnum Dei (Seek ye first the kingdom of God) Nunavut: Nunavut sanginivut (Nunavut our strength) Manitoba, Yukon, and the NWT have no official mottoes. ---
**Author:** ![Rysdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7cd45c/32.png) [@Rysdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysdad)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/34 "2001-10-26T04:56:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tamex \* > **Minnesota’s actually sounds good in both French (the official version) and English. It is _“L’etoile du Nord”_, which means “The Star of the North”.** Unofficial Minnesota Mottos: 30 Below - Uff da! Minnesota - We Not Only Walk On Water, We Drive on it for 6 Months out of Each Year Minnesota - At Least It Ain’t Wisconsin Minnesota - The Chapped Lip State Minnesota - The Top of the Mississippi River Sewer System Minnesota - Our Governor’s Dumb, But At Least We Admit It and finally, the signs that you read when you enter our state: Welcome to Minnesota. You need treatment. ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/35 "2001-10-26T13:47:19Z")
Ha! Some of those are funny! It looks better in the dark.hee hee re: EST ehrhardt seminar training, in short, back whenm, you paid to sit in a big room while some guy yelled at you and wouldn’t let you pee. There slogan was I found it! ---
**Author:** ![Zappo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b3f665/32.png) [@Zappo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zappo)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/36 "2001-10-26T13:50:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ThunderBunny \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Zappo \* > > Pennsylvania’s is “Virtue, Liberty and Independence.” > > > > Our tourism slogan is “Pennsylvania Memories Last a Lifetime.” > > \*\* > > Actually, I thought this was changed fairly recently (like in the last 2 years). The new one is “Pennsylvania: America Starts Here!” They’ve posted it on all the interstates as you cross the state lines. > > [snip] > > I’m sure it refers to the historical happenings in Philadelphia, but hey that was 200 years ago. Maybe if they say “America Started Here”. > \*\* Hi **ThunderBunny**! Actually, “America Starts Here” was the last tourism campaign. The “Memories Last A Lifetime” slogan is being used on TV and in radio ads. The old slogan might be coexisting with it, maybe. I guess they haven’t gotten around to changing the signs yet; PennDOT is probably too busy tearing up I-81 to be bothered. 🙂 A few years back when I was still living in Philadelphia one of the local radio stations ran a contest for a new tourism slogan for the city. My two entries were: Philadelphia-Gateway to Bala Cynwyd Philadelphia-Keeping Montgomery County From Having To Look At Camden since 1682. Zap ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/37 "2001-10-26T17:31:12Z")
Alaska - Where the men are men and the women are too. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/38 "2001-10-26T18:29:46Z")
Kentucky’s is “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.” I’ve been in Mississippi almost five years, and I have no clue what this state’s motto is. Go fig. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/39 "2001-10-26T19:16:58Z")
Welcome to Nevada- now leave! ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2001, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529/40 "2001-10-26T20:36:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jeep’s Phoenix \* > \*\*North Carolina’s motto is “To be rather than to seem.” I can’t remember what the Latin translation is though. > > A few [rejected state mottoes](http://www.thebigshow.com/BITPAGES/BADMOTTO.HTM). 😃 \*\* Esse Quam Videri [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mottos-state/89529.md?page=3)