Selected Mottoes (with Translations)
Linked and Listed by the first letter of the surname:
| A | B | C | D | E | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | H | I-J | K | L | M |
| Mc | N | O-P | Q-R | S | T |
| U-V | W | X-Y-Z |
Some of Our Favorite Mottoes from Coats of Arms
Many mottoes in heraldry speak loftily of virtue, courage, loyalty, strength, and faith.
After all, why have a motto that's depressing or that speaks ill of your family!
These are just a few of our favorites.
| Family Name | Original Language (Usually Latin or Old French) | English Translation (if needed) |
| Hartcup | A coeur valliant, rien impossible. | To a valiant heart, nothing is impossible. |
| Carnagie, Carnegie | Alis aspicit astra. | Flying, he keeps his eye on the stars. |
| Perrott | Amo, ut invenio. | I love as I find. |
| Bacchus, Bedingfield, Buller, Chinn, Drake, Flounders, Gothard, Graves, Greaves, Illidge, Manningham-Buller, Wedderburn, Weston |
The eagle does not catch flies. | |
| Bennet, Bennett, Creswell, Germain, Sackvill(e), Yoda? | Aut nunquam tentes, aut perfice. | Either do not attempt, or complete. |
| Bysse | Bis vincit qui se vincit. | He conquers twice who conquers himself. |
| Becher | Bis vivit qui bene vivit. | He lives twice who lives well. |
| Boss | Cada uno es hijo de sus obras. | Every man is the son of his works. |
| Acraman, Anstey, Beadon, Berens, Bower, Brownlow, Bunbury, Butler, Cambridge, Cook, Coutts, Croft, Cust, Davies, Deline, Frank, Grattan-Guinness, Graves, Hall, Harmer, Hill, Hood, Longley, Lukis, Maitland, Manning, Mathie, Miller, Partridge, Pickard-Cambridge, Round, St. Paul, Savory, Sheriff, Sherrif, Sturges, Swyne, Thurston, Turnour, Woodcock, Womack |
Esse quam videri. | To be, rather than to seem. |
| Wells | In scientia veritas in arte honestas. | In science truth, in art honour. |
| Haslen, Hasler | Qui nucleum vult, nucem frangat. | Who so wishes the kernel must crack the nut. |
| Wilson | Sequitur patrem non passibus aequis. | He follows his father with unequal steps. |
| Petty | Ut apes, geometriam. | As bees, geometry. |
| Hoskyns | Vincula de linguae vel tibi linguae dabit. | Lay restraint on thy tongue or thy tongue will lay it on thee. |
| Mackenzie | Virtute et valare luceo non uro. | By virtue and valour I shine, but do not burn. |
| Scarta, Scarth, Scras, Scrase | Volando, reptilia sperno. | Flying, I despise reptiles. |
| Maybee, d'Mailly, Mabille | Singulare Aude | Dare to be Unique or |
| McGilevray, McBean, Gillies, MacPherson, McGilleray, Gillespie, Gillis, Grant, Keir-Mackintosh, McCombie, McCrombie, McGillivray, McIntosh, Mackintosh |
Touch not the cat without a glove.
(Touch not the cat, but a glove.) |
|
| Robertson, Forbes | Dinna waken sleeping dogs. | |
| Crockett | Crow not, croke not. | |
| Order of the Garter | Honi soit qui mal y pense. | Shame to him who evil thinks. |
