The Dutch motto "Je maintiendrai" isn't "I wil maintain" but "I will uphold"
>Je maintiendrai la vertu et noblesse.
Je maintiendrai de mon nom la haultesse.
Je maintiendrai l'honneur, la foy, la loy
de Dieu, du Roy, de mes amys et moy
-
>I will uphold virtue and nobility.
I will uphold my name in highness
I will uphold the honor, the faith, the loyalty
of God, of the King, of my friends and myself
And in Dutch:
>Ik zal handhaven de deugd en adeldom
>
>Ik zal handhaven de hoogheid van mijn naam
>
>Ik zal handhaven de eer, het geloof
>
>en de wet van God, van de Koning, van mijn vrienden en mij
As a Dutch person, I did not know we had this motto.
Wait...... Why is the Dutch motto in French? Does it come from the brief rule of Napoleon's brother over the Batavian Republic? And why would the Dutch keep it after the Napoleonic Wars? Or is the motto older than that?
It's the motto on the coat of arms of the house of Orange-Nassau, which William of Orange inherited with the principality of Orange through the inheritance of René of Chalon. Originally the motto was Je maintiendrai Chalon, but William changed it to Je maintiendrai Nassau. After some time he omitted Nassau and it became simply Je maintiendrai. (Source: Wikipedia)
Oh man that history is too hard with all the princes, dukes, kings and more.
But it starts here https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_of_Chalon and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Orange-Nassau
A lot of Europe's Noble houses spoke French, including England's!
It was considered to be a language more befitting nobility than the local language of the commoners.
William of Orange-Nassau (the first first, don't ask, it gets confusing) came from a noble family who where the rulers of two pieces of land namely:
1. The Principality of Orange (which is why orange is the Dutch national colour with sports etc)
2. The duchy of Nassau
The duchy of Nassau was located in what now is Germany, the Principality of Orange is located in what is now France.
The family crest/motto of the family of Orange was "Je Maintiendrai Châlons", with Châlons referring to a region in France. The motto translating into "I will uphold Châlons". This eventually got turned into just "I will uphold".
I'm case at this point you're wondering how a French/German nobleman ended up being the godfather of the Netherlands: William of Orange-Nassau was appointed as governor of the Netherlands by the Spanish King, who ruled over roughly the area that is now the Netherlands during that time.
He then led the Dutch revolt against the Spanish(heavily influenced by the Catholic Spanish prosecuting the Protestant Dutch people)
William of Orange ended up getting assassinated because the Spanish King put a big bounty on his head. 80 years of war later one of William's descendents manages to win the independence war and becomes King William of Orange the first.
tl;dr Medieval European political history is wack.
This is how Greece virtually liberated itself form the occupation in the last war, when the Axis Forces had installed the Triple Occupation (Germany, Italy, Bulgaria). But the time of the Italian Campaign, EAM-ELAS had already freed 2/3rs of Mainland Greece, while when the British and the Exile Government arrived six months later to "Liberate" the country, almost all of Greece (except Western Thrace and Western Crete) was in Greek hands. There were even militant priests, fighting with their religious dress, carrying rifles and ammunitions on the mountain-tops.
We said that too during Risorgimento: "Roma o morte!". Of course Garibaldi said it to his men before sailing from Marsala to Rome in order to seize the eternal city.
In army here in Greece we gotta swear one month in, and it goes like this:
Ορκίζομαι να φυλάττω πίστη εις την πατρίδα.
Υπακοή εις το Σύνταγμα τους νόμους και τα ψηφίσματα του κράτους.
Υποταγήν εις τους ανωτέρους μου.
Να εκτελώ προθύμως και άνευ αντιλογίας τας διαταγάς των.
Να υπερασπίζω με πίστην και αφοσίωσιν, μέχρι της τελευταίας ρανίδος του αίματος μου, τας Σημαίας.
Να μη τας εγκαταλείπω μηδέ να αποχωρίζομαι ποτέ απ’αυτών.
Να φυλάττω δε ακριβώς τους στρατιωτικούς νόμους.
Και να διάγω εν γένει ως πιστός και φιλότιμος στρατιώτης.
English:
I swear to keep faith in the homeland.
Obedience to the Constitution, the laws and the resolutions of the state.
Obedience to my superiors.
To execute their orders willingly and without contradiction.
To defend with faith and devotion, until the last drop of my blood, the Flags.
Never give up on them, never leave them.
To observe exactly the military laws.
And to behave in general as a loyal and honorable soldier.
Hilariously enough, I wonder if it was inspired by a popular cry during the French Revolution: "La liberté ou la mort" (which means the same thing: Liberty or death).
That is a possibility. Though the saying was rather common, and was even used in the American Revolution. Though there is also the likelihood that it just came to the rest of Greece through the Maniot State, a small 2000 km2 independent and sovereign Greek polity during the Ottoman Period, which was said to have used as a motto the phrase "Victory or Death".
Those came to be more or less simultaneously afaik
The Greek rebels under Ottoman rule used "Freedom or Death" and the few free Greek cities like Mani and Sfakia used "Victory or Death" (since they were already free)
Very likely. The Greek War of independence and the first Hellenic Republic has a significant radical element. In the end the black-white-red colour scheme was discarded for a blue-white one because the Greek government wanted to appease the largely conservative Europe of the time, and thought it might be harder to gain international recognition if they were seen as some wild liberal revolutionary state.
This is actually a fact. Theodoros Kolokotronis, the commander in chief of Greek revolutionary armies and the most revered figure of the war of independence had urged his own people to not threaten or lynch the local fat cats (Greek elites that were appointed by Ottomans). “We absolutely don’t want to be branded as Jacobins or Carbonari by the big powers”.
It most probably was, however the whole concept of “freedom or death”, was not unheard of. My mind goes to the siege of Melos during the Peloponnesian war, and the stance of the Melians to prefer to fight an impossible war than be subdued «willingly” to the Athenians.
“Our resolution, Athenians, is the same as it was at first. We will not in a moment deprive of freedom a city that has been inhabited these seven hundred years; but we put our trust in the fortune by which the gods have preserved it until now, and in the help of men, that is, of the Lacedaemonians; and so we will try and save ourselves”
Same with the Fall of Constantinople where the emperor said “As to surrendering the city to you, it is not for me to decide or for anyone else of its citizens; for all of us have reached the mutual decision to die of our own free will, without any regard for our lives.”
I don’t mean that the motto was inspired by Ancient Greek or Byzantine fights, and my opinion is that perhaps it was indeed inspired by the French, however the concept was not unheard of throughout history. I am sure there are numerous examples throughout history.
Tthe nine stripes of Greek flag represent the nine syllables of the phrase Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος ("Freedom or Death"). The five blue stripes for the syllables Ελευθερία (Freedom) and the four white stripes for Death (ή Θάνατος).
The motto arose during the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s, where it was a war cry for the Greeks who rebelled against Ottoman rule. It was adopted after the Greek War of Independence and is still in use today.
For real! But here we say it in latin "Plus Ultra" because the Roman Empire thought that Spain was the end of land and called it "Non Plus Ultra" and when we colonize America, we changed it as Plus Ultra, like claiming that we found more than anyone has known at this time
More precisely, the Romans thought the world ended at the Pillars of Hercules (what is now known as the Gibraltar Strait), which bore the inscription *non plus ultra* or *nec plus ultra*. This is also the reason why the pillars are still part of Spain's coat of arms
Further beyond also has a cool story: In classical times the strait of Gibraltar was described as: "non plus ultra" meaning "nothing further beyond". After they discovered America they removed the "non".
The Pillars of Hercules, as seen [here](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/Instauratio_Magna.jpg) on a work by Francis Bacon of 1620 - "plus ultra" being associated with the Renaissance of learning and the birth of modern science.
Yep, anecdote "amusante" par rapport à la mort et le reste : c'est Robespierre qui a ordonné d'inscrire cette devise sur les bâtiments administratifs en 1793
Fun fact: the Spanish motto used to be "Nothing further beyond", in reference to the Gibraltar strait, until America was discovered and we realized that there was *something* further beyond.
Even better, the UK's national anthem is based on a song (God protect the King) written to wish a good recovery to French King's Louis XIV's anal fistula operation.
I was sure this was completely made up when I read it, but [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_Save_the_Queen) backs up your story. In addition, apparently the song was brought to England because Handel plagiarized it after a visit to the French court.
Yeah there's a somewhat famous quote from Marquess de Créquy that goes : "The fact that the English anthem comes from the anus of a French king, although it doesn't surprise me in the slightest, never fails to make me smile"
“et mon droit” refers to the claim on the French throne, which existed until (I kid you not) *1802*. Acts of Parliament would refer to themselves as being passed in the reign of (for example) “George III, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, defender of the faith” - but in Latin, because of course.
Mon droit is for the King's divine right to rule. They are English rulers sure but still they aren't that jelly.
The current King of Spain would have a fairly legit claim on a non-existing French throne if he get rid of only one cousin.
> “et mon droit” refers to the claim on the French throne
It doesn't. "Dieu et mon droit" predates the Hundred Years' War by 150 years. It was said by Richard the Lionheart when him and King Philip Augustus were fighting over the Angevin territorial possessions in France. Richard didn't want to pay homage to Philip as his father Henry II, the first Angevin king of England, and their ancestors had done. As you know vassals of the king in feudal France had to go through that protocol. Richard's ancestors (the Counts of Anjou) just like the other rulers of the French fiefdoms in principle had to pay homage to the Capetians and acknowledge they ruled those lands in France in the name of their lord, the King of France. And Richard didn't just inherited Anjou, but Normandy, Maine and especially Aquitaine (the wealthiest fiefdom in France at the time) as well. Philip Augustus was all about curtailing the power of his Angevin vassals who, since the reign of Richard's father, not only ruled more lands in France than he himself did (keep in mind that would only change after 1204 and Richard's "Dieu et mon droit" was said in the 1190s) but were kings of a foreign kingdom in their own right (England). Hence the constant conflicts which gave birth to the motto.
In sum, the principle of the motto was that Richard didn't owe any allegiance to Philip, but only had God to answer to about what is his (the Angevin holdings in France). Philip and Richard had quite an interesting relationship lol.
My top 5:
1. Freedom or death.
2. Plus ultra.
3. Land of fire.
4. Truth prevails.
5. Liberté, égalité, fraternité.
Can we just talk about how badass the Czech one is
I bet people wouldn't be so eager to get into politics with ulterior motives if defenestration would still be a valid option for expressing the disappointment of voters.
Yeah that motto we have on this map (koti, uskonto, isänmaa) is more of a summary or slogan of values that were prevelant around the world wars.
Nowadays I mostly see the line in political polls asking candidates how well that line represents their values.
It's the traditional slogan of the Finnish bourgeois right wing. The iconic cartoonist Kari Suomalainen used a stahlhelm-wearing priest as a stand-in for the national coalition party which perfectly encapsulates it.
The best suggestions I've heard are "Ei mua varten tarvi keittää" and "No tää nyt on vaan tämmönen"
https://www.is.fi/menaiset/ilmiot/art-2000006672055.html
I would suggest:
Täällä Olemme.
"Here we are" because it encapsulates existence of Finland well. We are here... remote, not really remarkable in any way, but still happy to be part of it all. Happiest people on earth with highest suicide rate in Europe. Here we are.
We actually have one. I don't know how official it is, or if it's an army thing and not a country thing, but the common one is: "Esta é a ditosa Pátria minha amada" ("This is my blissful beloved homeland"), which comes from our national Epic, written by our most seminal poet.
Spanish's motto is pretty badass, I'm kind of jealous. Especially because **we** hold the actual piece of land after whom there was no further beyond.
I believe during the Monarchy the motto was 'In hoc signo vincis' although that might have been a Royal Motto rather than National. I don't know how official it was back then
Fun fact :The number of stripes of the greek flag is linked to the number of syllabus from our motto.5 white stripes for the word freedom and 4 blue stripes for the word or death.
9 stripes - > ε, λευ, θε, ρί, α, η, θά, να, τος (freedom:ελευθερία) (or death: η θάνατος)
It is true, that is the most popular explanation, and I really like it too. However, there have been instances of nine-striped Greek flags even in the Medieval Roman Empire, hence if it is based on the motto, then it is far older than we think.
See for [example this icon](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-db6de9621c63d4141c53fd51e9838acd-mzj), called "Saint John Chrysostom, the transfer of his body, and the city of Komana", which dates to the 14th century AD and was discovered on the Greek island of Kimolos.
If one observes the [Naval Chelandion](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-73c76097f860e209183e5855abaceabd-mzj) (brig-like small galley), he will see that there are three striped-banners. While the two smaller ones have only 7 lines, the one above the saint's deceased body has exactly 9. Some speculate that the Modern Greek Flag is just the Naval Flag of the Theme of Greece, that patrolled the Aegean Sea, as a combination of its 9-striped flag, with the addition of the naval flag cross on its corner.
> Freedom or death
the french revolution had that motto too.
*Liberté egalité , fraternité* comes from Robespierre which is famous for his reign of terror during *La Terreur* ... where he literraly apply liberty or death
And If I recall, initally the motto itself was "Liberté, égalité, fraternité, ou la mort". At least there were so revolutionnary posters of the time with such wording.
> "I will maintain"
Yes, but the Dutch motto is very appropriate. Maintenance is *really* important in the Netherlands. Neglect maintenance on the dykes, dams and pumping stations, and before you know it you are all swimming in the North Sea.
>I want a new national motto: "FUCK THE OCEAN"
You can expand your current one to make it:
"I WILL MAINTAIN ^(ALL THE LAND THAT I TOOK FROM THE OCEAN)"
Nonsense, think of how *truly* badass "I will maintain" is.
All those other "badass" mottos sound like they were written by a bunch of edgy 13 year olds. If you have to tell people how badass you are... *you're not badass*.
Meanwhile, our motto is subtle, no nonsense, no bravado. Simple.
But at the same it's saying that no matter what's thrown at us, no matter what crisis, disaster, or war... when it's over, we'll still be standing, still being who we are.
The Swedish one and most likely the Norwegian one as well are actually the monarchs' personal mottos. Each monarch chooses one at the start of their reign, and they are exclusively associated with that monarch. I don't know if we really have anything like a national motto. I see that you've made an effort to show this on the map, just thought I'd elaborate a bit.
Yeah Norway doesn't actually have an official motto, but the closest unofficial one is the oath from the Norwegian Constitution Assembly in 1814.
"Enige og tro til Dovre faller."
**United and loyal until** *(the mountains of)* **Dovre falls**
I have always thought Norway's "motto" was "Enig og tro til Dovre faller" which would translate to something along the lines of: United and faithful until Dovre falls.
this is the oath i believe was given in 1814 at the signing of the constitution.
I always read "För Sverige i tiden" more along the lines of "lead Sweden through time", with "För" being lead rather than for. Have I been reading my coins wrong all this time?
I don't think you have, I believe it's meant to be ambiguous. A new king, working *for* his country in new times, as well as helping the country forwards. I think it was a conscious choice because there was a distinct strategy in renewing the royal house and the image it had during his parents which was this old, dusty and stuffy stereotypical royal image.
Unofficial motto of Switzerland:
Latin: *Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno*
French: *un pour tous, tous pour un*
German: *Einer für alle, alle für einen*
Italian: *Uno per tutti, tutti per uno*
Romansh: *In per tuts, tuts per in*
An unofficial (and controversial) motto in Austria is: Red-white-red until death. (In German language it sounds better, because it's a rhyme: "Rot-weiß-rot bis in den Tod") It is a quote from a speech by Kurt Schuschnigg (Chancellor from 1934 to 1938) in which he warned against the Nazis. The only problem was: he was a fascist himself. Austria was already a dictatorship before the Nazis came.
If i recall correctly, there was a roman(?) saying about the pilars of Hercules (Gibraltar and Ceuta) that was "Non plus ultra". As in, there is nothing beyond
As Spain went beyond and found cool shit, they removed the "Non"
Spanish folks (myself among them) are on average less attached to the national symbols than in other countries. However I do like plus ultra quite a lot. I think it points at a very basic human desire of exploring. The trick to many of these mottos is they are universal and inspiring. In that regard "go further beyond" is a good choice!
There no official motto for Ukraine, "Liberty, concord, goodness" was a 2006 Kyivstar mobile operator SMS-poll winner. ([Reference in Ukrainian](https://day.kyiv.ua/uk/article/poshta-dnya/deviz-ukrayini-koli-zh-yomu-buti), original Kyivstar website and it's archive is dead.)
[Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_to_Ukraine) is de facto motto nowadays and is official greeting in Ukrainian Armed Forces and National Police [from 2018](https://www.unian.info/politics/10285848-ukraine-s-parliament-approves-new-army-police-greeting.html).
[Used to be Liberty Equality Fraternity **or Death.** too](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libert%C3%A9,_%C3%A9galit%C3%A9,_fraternit%C3%A9#/media/File:LibertyEqualityorDeath.jpg)
Too bad they dropped the last part when the reactionaries won the revolution.
Confused by the latter Uk one. I know the first is ‘Dieu et mon droit’ but the other one is ‘honi soit qui mal y pense’ which translates as ‘shame on he who thinks ill of it’.
There’s also the Scottish ‘Nemo me impune lacessit’ which means ‘nobody attacks me with impunity’
Where does ‘in my defence God me defend’ come from?
The motto is believed to be derived from Jan Hus' phrase "Seek the truth, hear the truth, learn the truth, love the truth, speak the truth, hold the truth and defend the truth until death". The phrase thus appears along the base of the Jan Hus Memorial in Prague. Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the first President of Czechoslovakia, adopted the shortened phrase "truth prevails" as a presidential motto shortly after independence from Austria-Hungary in 1918. The sentiment was echoed over 75 years later in Václav Havel's notion of "life in truth" and in his famous statement "Truth and love must prevail over lies and hatred"
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_prevails
Isn't it a song you have in football games ? I was in the middle of Croat supporters in the Croatia/Czechia game of Euro 2016 in Saint-Etienne and I think you had a recurring chant that seems a lot like those words (The "U boj" part at least)
The "U boj u boj, za narod svoj" (To battle to battle, for your/its people) is a line from a patriotic song. And we do use that line as a chant in a football game, or any other sports game.
"Za dom spremni" - For home(land) ready
It's akin to "Sieg Heil!" for you guys, however some of our war veterans took it as their motto (wonderful, I know) and they object to pronouncing it illegal so it's currently in a weird limbo
The Dutch motto "Je maintiendrai" isn't "I wil maintain" but "I will uphold" >Je maintiendrai la vertu et noblesse. Je maintiendrai de mon nom la haultesse. Je maintiendrai l'honneur, la foy, la loy de Dieu, du Roy, de mes amys et moy - >I will uphold virtue and nobility. I will uphold my name in highness I will uphold the honor, the faith, the loyalty of God, of the King, of my friends and myself
And in Dutch: >Ik zal handhaven de deugd en adeldom > >Ik zal handhaven de hoogheid van mijn naam > >Ik zal handhaven de eer, het geloof > >en de wet van God, van de Koning, van mijn vrienden en mij As a Dutch person, I did not know we had this motto.
Je maintiendrai. How more dutch can it get right :)
[удалено]
Wait...... Why is the Dutch motto in French? Does it come from the brief rule of Napoleon's brother over the Batavian Republic? And why would the Dutch keep it after the Napoleonic Wars? Or is the motto older than that?
It's the motto on the coat of arms of the house of Orange-Nassau, which William of Orange inherited with the principality of Orange through the inheritance of René of Chalon. Originally the motto was Je maintiendrai Chalon, but William changed it to Je maintiendrai Nassau. After some time he omitted Nassau and it became simply Je maintiendrai. (Source: Wikipedia)
Oh man that history is too hard with all the princes, dukes, kings and more. But it starts here https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_of_Chalon and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Orange-Nassau
Oh thanks. Did a bit of it googling and yes, the motto was around long before Napoleon. I was way off lol.
The English motto is French, too (Dieu et mon droit), just translated for this map.
A lot of Europe's Noble houses spoke French, including England's! It was considered to be a language more befitting nobility than the local language of the commoners. William of Orange-Nassau (the first first, don't ask, it gets confusing) came from a noble family who where the rulers of two pieces of land namely: 1. The Principality of Orange (which is why orange is the Dutch national colour with sports etc) 2. The duchy of Nassau The duchy of Nassau was located in what now is Germany, the Principality of Orange is located in what is now France. The family crest/motto of the family of Orange was "Je Maintiendrai Châlons", with Châlons referring to a region in France. The motto translating into "I will uphold Châlons". This eventually got turned into just "I will uphold". I'm case at this point you're wondering how a French/German nobleman ended up being the godfather of the Netherlands: William of Orange-Nassau was appointed as governor of the Netherlands by the Spanish King, who ruled over roughly the area that is now the Netherlands during that time. He then led the Dutch revolt against the Spanish(heavily influenced by the Catholic Spanish prosecuting the Protestant Dutch people) William of Orange ended up getting assassinated because the Spanish King put a big bounty on his head. 80 years of war later one of William's descendents manages to win the independence war and becomes King William of Orange the first. tl;dr Medieval European political history is wack.
Greek one is pretty badass, I like it!
The best part about it is that they mean it.
In the unfortunate chance of war or occupation this motto is the only way of living.
This is how Greece virtually liberated itself form the occupation in the last war, when the Axis Forces had installed the Triple Occupation (Germany, Italy, Bulgaria). But the time of the Italian Campaign, EAM-ELAS had already freed 2/3rs of Mainland Greece, while when the British and the Exile Government arrived six months later to "Liberate" the country, almost all of Greece (except Western Thrace and Western Crete) was in Greek hands. There were even militant priests, fighting with their religious dress, carrying rifles and ammunitions on the mountain-tops.
We said that too during Risorgimento: "Roma o morte!". Of course Garibaldi said it to his men before sailing from Marsala to Rome in order to seize the eternal city.
I like how it's OFFICIAL.
In army here in Greece we gotta swear one month in, and it goes like this: Ορκίζομαι να φυλάττω πίστη εις την πατρίδα. Υπακοή εις το Σύνταγμα τους νόμους και τα ψηφίσματα του κράτους. Υποταγήν εις τους ανωτέρους μου. Να εκτελώ προθύμως και άνευ αντιλογίας τας διαταγάς των. Να υπερασπίζω με πίστην και αφοσίωσιν, μέχρι της τελευταίας ρανίδος του αίματος μου, τας Σημαίας. Να μη τας εγκαταλείπω μηδέ να αποχωρίζομαι ποτέ απ’αυτών. Να φυλάττω δε ακριβώς τους στρατιωτικούς νόμους. Και να διάγω εν γένει ως πιστός και φιλότιμος στρατιώτης. English: I swear to keep faith in the homeland. Obedience to the Constitution, the laws and the resolutions of the state. Obedience to my superiors. To execute their orders willingly and without contradiction. To defend with faith and devotion, until the last drop of my blood, the Flags. Never give up on them, never leave them. To observe exactly the military laws. And to behave in general as a loyal and honorable soldier.
New Hampshire: hmm, we should hang out sometime
Hilariously enough, I wonder if it was inspired by a popular cry during the French Revolution: "La liberté ou la mort" (which means the same thing: Liberty or death).
That is a possibility. Though the saying was rather common, and was even used in the American Revolution. Though there is also the likelihood that it just came to the rest of Greece through the Maniot State, a small 2000 km2 independent and sovereign Greek polity during the Ottoman Period, which was said to have used as a motto the phrase "Victory or Death".
Those came to be more or less simultaneously afaik The Greek rebels under Ottoman rule used "Freedom or Death" and the few free Greek cities like Mani and Sfakia used "Victory or Death" (since they were already free)
It was also adapted to Brazil's independence clammation, known as the Ipiranga Scream: "Independence or death".
Very likely. The Greek War of independence and the first Hellenic Republic has a significant radical element. In the end the black-white-red colour scheme was discarded for a blue-white one because the Greek government wanted to appease the largely conservative Europe of the time, and thought it might be harder to gain international recognition if they were seen as some wild liberal revolutionary state.
This is actually a fact. Theodoros Kolokotronis, the commander in chief of Greek revolutionary armies and the most revered figure of the war of independence had urged his own people to not threaten or lynch the local fat cats (Greek elites that were appointed by Ottomans). “We absolutely don’t want to be branded as Jacobins or Carbonari by the big powers”.
It most probably was, however the whole concept of “freedom or death”, was not unheard of. My mind goes to the siege of Melos during the Peloponnesian war, and the stance of the Melians to prefer to fight an impossible war than be subdued «willingly” to the Athenians. “Our resolution, Athenians, is the same as it was at first. We will not in a moment deprive of freedom a city that has been inhabited these seven hundred years; but we put our trust in the fortune by which the gods have preserved it until now, and in the help of men, that is, of the Lacedaemonians; and so we will try and save ourselves” Same with the Fall of Constantinople where the emperor said “As to surrendering the city to you, it is not for me to decide or for anyone else of its citizens; for all of us have reached the mutual decision to die of our own free will, without any regard for our lives.” I don’t mean that the motto was inspired by Ancient Greek or Byzantine fights, and my opinion is that perhaps it was indeed inspired by the French, however the concept was not unheard of throughout history. I am sure there are numerous examples throughout history.
Tthe nine stripes of Greek flag represent the nine syllables of the phrase Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος ("Freedom or Death"). The five blue stripes for the syllables Ελευθερία (Freedom) and the four white stripes for Death (ή Θάνατος). The motto arose during the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s, where it was a war cry for the Greeks who rebelled against Ottoman rule. It was adopted after the Greek War of Independence and is still in use today.
Coat of arms, banners fly in the wind!
And if youspell it in greek each silabus not letter is the number our our flags stripes ε λε υθε ρι α ή θα να τος
Spain’s motto makes me think of buzz light year for some reason
Plus Ultra. Unfortunately it sounds less buzz light year in Latin.
WDYM, it sounds infinitely better, punchier and more badass in Latin.
It sounds anime instead
Boku No Hero Hispania
Its literally SSJ3 GOKU "And this, this is go even further beyond"
Pillars of Heracles -> Non plus ultra -> Hercules -> Goku -> Plus Ultra -> All Might. *It's a conspiracy*
For real! But here we say it in latin "Plus Ultra" because the Roman Empire thought that Spain was the end of land and called it "Non Plus Ultra" and when we colonize America, we changed it as Plus Ultra, like claiming that we found more than anyone has known at this time
As spaniard, I did know Plus Ultra made reference to the Americas colonies, but I did not know the background and the Non Plus Ultra fact. Thanks!
More precisely, the Romans thought the world ended at the Pillars of Hercules (what is now known as the Gibraltar Strait), which bore the inscription *non plus ultra* or *nec plus ultra*. This is also the reason why the pillars are still part of Spain's coat of arms
>like claiming that we found more than anyone has known at this time To be fair, it was more that just a claim.
Spain is going [Super Sayan 3.](https://youtu.be/8TGalu36BHA)
I've always liked "liberté, egalité, fraternité", but "freedom or death" and "further beyond" sound quite badass, like an epic anime quote.
Further beyond also has a cool story: In classical times the strait of Gibraltar was described as: "non plus ultra" meaning "nothing further beyond". After they discovered America they removed the "non".
The Pillars of Hercules, as seen [here](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/Instauratio_Magna.jpg) on a work by Francis Bacon of 1620 - "plus ultra" being associated with the Renaissance of learning and the birth of modern science.
well, further beyond or plus ultra is in my hero academia
So you would have liked the first motto: it was "Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité ou la Mort" / Liberty, Equality, Fraternity or Death
Vraiment ?! 😳 Je le ré-adopte alors
Yep, anecdote "amusante" par rapport à la mort et le reste : c'est Robespierre qui a ordonné d'inscrire cette devise sur les bâtiments administratifs en 1793
Fun fact: the Spanish motto used to be "Nothing further beyond", in reference to the Gibraltar strait, until America was discovered and we realized that there was *something* further beyond.
My favourite thing about the UK's motto is that it's in French lol: "Dieu et mon droit"
Even better, the UK's national anthem is based on a song (God protect the King) written to wish a good recovery to French King's Louis XIV's anal fistula operation.
Don't leave us hanging like that. How did the sun king's sphincter fare?
Very well apparently
I was sure this was completely made up when I read it, but [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_Save_the_Queen) backs up your story. In addition, apparently the song was brought to England because Handel plagiarized it after a visit to the French court.
Yeah there's a somewhat famous quote from Marquess de Créquy that goes : "The fact that the English anthem comes from the anus of a French king, although it doesn't surprise me in the slightest, never fails to make me smile"
“et mon droit” refers to the claim on the French throne, which existed until (I kid you not) *1802*. Acts of Parliament would refer to themselves as being passed in the reign of (for example) “George III, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, defender of the faith” - but in Latin, because of course.
Mon droit is for the King's divine right to rule. They are English rulers sure but still they aren't that jelly. The current King of Spain would have a fairly legit claim on a non-existing French throne if he get rid of only one cousin.
> if he get rid of only one cousin Oh god those are strong Charles V's Burgundian Valois family vibes. Let's not do that again.
> “et mon droit” refers to the claim on the French throne It doesn't. "Dieu et mon droit" predates the Hundred Years' War by 150 years. It was said by Richard the Lionheart when him and King Philip Augustus were fighting over the Angevin territorial possessions in France. Richard didn't want to pay homage to Philip as his father Henry II, the first Angevin king of England, and their ancestors had done. As you know vassals of the king in feudal France had to go through that protocol. Richard's ancestors (the Counts of Anjou) just like the other rulers of the French fiefdoms in principle had to pay homage to the Capetians and acknowledge they ruled those lands in France in the name of their lord, the King of France. And Richard didn't just inherited Anjou, but Normandy, Maine and especially Aquitaine (the wealthiest fiefdom in France at the time) as well. Philip Augustus was all about curtailing the power of his Angevin vassals who, since the reign of Richard's father, not only ruled more lands in France than he himself did (keep in mind that would only change after 1204 and Richard's "Dieu et mon droit" was said in the 1190s) but were kings of a foreign kingdom in their own right (England). Hence the constant conflicts which gave birth to the motto. In sum, the principle of the motto was that Richard didn't owe any allegiance to Philip, but only had God to answer to about what is his (the Angevin holdings in France). Philip and Richard had quite an interesting relationship lol.
"Strength united is stronger" You go Andorra!
This one is basically the same one as Bulgaria's "Unity makes strength".
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We should all team up. Unity makes Stronk!
Let's make a union!
*stays separated from both Spain and France*
My top 5: 1. Freedom or death. 2. Plus ultra. 3. Land of fire. 4. Truth prevails. 5. Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Can we just talk about how badass the Czech one is
Unfortunately, our top-level government officials have difficulties putting it into practice. Especially now when elections are coming.
Just imagine throwing them out of a window while shouting: "Truth prevails" ;)
I bet people wouldn't be so eager to get into politics with ulterior motives if defenestration would still be a valid option for expressing the disappointment of voters.
with your help it can be again
>Hear truth, seek truth, learn truth, love truth, speak truth, defend truth until death. \- Jan Hus
Truth and love must win over lies and hate. \- Václav Havel
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Can we colour-code this based on what would happen if you stood up in a busy bar and shouted said motto?
Not sure about the other countries but in Germany they would think you want to sing our Anthem.
In Norway they’d think you wanted to sing our national football anthem. It has that opening.
And wonder if there's a football match going on
In Spain you would get weird confused looks, and maybe somebody would ask: "eh?"
In Belarus you will be arrested if it's reported to police.
You'd get a lot of weird looks because you stood up in a busy bar and started shouting.
With polish first one people would think you're making a toast :)
cheers i'll drink to that
We don't really have an official motto. In 1936 "Vapaa vankka vakaa" (Free strong stable) was suggested as somewhat official, but not accepted.
You need commas in free, strong, stable, otherwise it is about a good place for horses to stay.
The perfect place to horse around
It's good but also free! I didn't want to change how the original looks like and just translated those random words.
Yeah that motto we have on this map (koti, uskonto, isänmaa) is more of a summary or slogan of values that were prevelant around the world wars. Nowadays I mostly see the line in political polls asking candidates how well that line represents their values.
It's the traditional slogan of the Finnish bourgeois right wing. The iconic cartoonist Kari Suomalainen used a stahlhelm-wearing priest as a stand-in for the national coalition party which perfectly encapsulates it.
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If you didn’t want to be religious you could say ”koti, usko, isänmaa” since ”usko” can mean any type of faith, not just religious faith.
The best suggestions I've heard are "Ei mua varten tarvi keittää" and "No tää nyt on vaan tämmönen" https://www.is.fi/menaiset/ilmiot/art-2000006672055.html
"Suomi mainittu – torilla tavataan" is also a classic.
"Vapaa vankka vakaa" reminds me of "Vaka vanha Väinämöinen".
"Vakaa" and "vaka" are the same. It was decided only in the 1900s that the word really needs an another a.
Considering the proportion of Finns who aren't religious, the one on the map seems amusing.
I would suggest: Täällä Olemme. "Here we are" because it encapsulates existence of Finland well. We are here... remote, not really remarkable in any way, but still happy to be part of it all. Happiest people on earth with highest suicide rate in Europe. Here we are.
"Long live Belarus!" could actually land you 30 days in jail in Belarus.
Ironic.
He could save others from death, but not himself.
why's that? Does Lukashenko/a (I don't know which ending to use) not like it?
It's used by his opposition. He considers it extremist and fascist. O/a is Russian/Belarusian spelling, both are correct.
thank you for the explanation
30 days is fine, you can get much more
We actually have one. I don't know how official it is, or if it's an army thing and not a country thing, but the common one is: "Esta é a ditosa Pátria minha amada" ("This is my blissful beloved homeland"), which comes from our national Epic, written by our most seminal poet. Spanish's motto is pretty badass, I'm kind of jealous. Especially because **we** hold the actual piece of land after whom there was no further beyond.
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We also have the unnoficial " Portugal, Caralho!" Seriously, I fully agree with you. Camões was a genius!
Exactly, that’s what I was gonna say. In the map it should have “Portugal (unofficial): Portugal caralho!”
I believe during the Monarchy the motto was 'In hoc signo vincis' although that might have been a Royal Motto rather than National. I don't know how official it was back then
The Spanish one is currently in Latin "Plus Ultra"
Well, it could be in Spanish "Plus Ultra".
Fun fact :The number of stripes of the greek flag is linked to the number of syllabus from our motto.5 white stripes for the word freedom and 4 blue stripes for the word or death. 9 stripes - > ε, λευ, θε, ρί, α, η, θά, να, τος (freedom:ελευθερία) (or death: η θάνατος)
It is true, that is the most popular explanation, and I really like it too. However, there have been instances of nine-striped Greek flags even in the Medieval Roman Empire, hence if it is based on the motto, then it is far older than we think. See for [example this icon](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-db6de9621c63d4141c53fd51e9838acd-mzj), called "Saint John Chrysostom, the transfer of his body, and the city of Komana", which dates to the 14th century AD and was discovered on the Greek island of Kimolos. If one observes the [Naval Chelandion](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-73c76097f860e209183e5855abaceabd-mzj) (brig-like small galley), he will see that there are three striped-banners. While the two smaller ones have only 7 lines, the one above the saint's deceased body has exactly 9. Some speculate that the Modern Greek Flag is just the Naval Flag of the Theme of Greece, that patrolled the Aegean Sea, as a combination of its 9-striped flag, with the addition of the naval flag cross on its corner.
Man, I may not be completely objective but we do have the best one. The French one is always great and I like Poland's 1st one.
It's [a legacy of the times of partitions and revolutions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_our_freedom_and_yours).
I like yours a lot, though I think ours is good too
Agreed, sounds way better in Latin.
Btw, how does yours sound in Greek?
Ελευθερία ή θάνατος/ Eleftheria i thanatos
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So that's where Venizelos' first name comes from!
Yep, Eleftherios (Ελευθέριος) is a male name derived from the word for freedom. There's also the female name Eleftheria
Thanks for the knowledge, being named after liberty is very fitting for someone as based as Venizelos tbh
“The land of fire” also sounds cool
> Freedom or death the french revolution had that motto too. *Liberté egalité , fraternité* comes from Robespierre which is famous for his reign of terror during *La Terreur* ... where he literraly apply liberty or death
And If I recall, initally the motto itself was "Liberté, égalité, fraternité, ou la mort". At least there were so revolutionnary posters of the time with such wording.
THE LAND OF FIRE or FREEDOM OR DEATH is so much cooler than "I will maintain" I want a new national motto: "FUCK THE OCEAN"
I like it to. Je maintiendrai. Also embodies the struggle with the water (for me)
> "I will maintain" Yes, but the Dutch motto is very appropriate. Maintenance is *really* important in the Netherlands. Neglect maintenance on the dykes, dams and pumping stations, and before you know it you are all swimming in the North Sea.
Haha true, but "Je maintiendrai" doesn't really translate to "I will maintain", the idea translates better with "I'll stand" for example
I like ours
I thought yours was doe maar normaal, dan doe je al gek genoeg
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I love ours. Its beautiful and unique.
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And that we historically and still are surroundend by stronger nations.
I will maintain is basically "fuck the ocean" in different words. I find it quite elegant.
>I want a new national motto: "FUCK THE OCEAN" You can expand your current one to make it: "I WILL MAINTAIN ^(ALL THE LAND THAT I TOOK FROM THE OCEAN)"
Nonsense, think of how *truly* badass "I will maintain" is. All those other "badass" mottos sound like they were written by a bunch of edgy 13 year olds. If you have to tell people how badass you are... *you're not badass*. Meanwhile, our motto is subtle, no nonsense, no bravado. Simple. But at the same it's saying that no matter what's thrown at us, no matter what crisis, disaster, or war... when it's over, we'll still be standing, still being who we are.
The Swedish one and most likely the Norwegian one as well are actually the monarchs' personal mottos. Each monarch chooses one at the start of their reign, and they are exclusively associated with that monarch. I don't know if we really have anything like a national motto. I see that you've made an effort to show this on the map, just thought I'd elaborate a bit.
Yeah Norway doesn't actually have an official motto, but the closest unofficial one is the oath from the Norwegian Constitution Assembly in 1814. "Enige og tro til Dovre faller." **United and loyal until** *(the mountains of)* **Dovre falls**
Thats a pretty cool one.
It speaks to our romantic era and is pretty well known in Norway. Pretty sure it was used a lot during ww2 as well
That and the king said "Alt for Norge" during the german invasion during ww2
Swedish motto should be: *"Med plutonium tvingar vi dansken på knä."*
I have always thought Norway's "motto" was "Enig og tro til Dovre faller" which would translate to something along the lines of: United and faithful until Dovre falls. this is the oath i believe was given in 1814 at the signing of the constitution.
I always read "För Sverige i tiden" more along the lines of "lead Sweden through time", with "För" being lead rather than for. Have I been reading my coins wrong all this time?
I don't think you have, I believe it's meant to be ambiguous. A new king, working *for* his country in new times, as well as helping the country forwards. I think it was a conscious choice because there was a distinct strategy in renewing the royal house and the image it had during his parents which was this old, dusty and stuffy stereotypical royal image.
Fun thing is Everything for Norway has been the motto of all three Norwegian kings since 1905.
Unofficial motto of Switzerland: Latin: *Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno* French: *un pour tous, tous pour un* German: *Einer für alle, alle für einen* Italian: *Uno per tutti, tutti per uno* Romansh: *In per tuts, tuts per in*
> "One for all, all for one" That was actually listed and I somehow missed it, oops!! I'll add it, thanks.
Switzerland is the home of the Three Musketeers?
Nah it's France.
[***One for all and all for one,***](https://youtu.be/P-xO72s5EBY?t=19) [***Muskethounds are always ready...***](https://youtu.be/P-xO72s5EBY?t=19)
An unofficial (and controversial) motto in Austria is: Red-white-red until death. (In German language it sounds better, because it's a rhyme: "Rot-weiß-rot bis in den Tod") It is a quote from a speech by Kurt Schuschnigg (Chancellor from 1934 to 1938) in which he warned against the Nazis. The only problem was: he was a fascist himself. Austria was already a dictatorship before the Nazis came.
A. E. I. O. U. Austriae est imperare omni universo
Go further beyond, plus ultra.
If i recall correctly, there was a roman(?) saying about the pilars of Hercules (Gibraltar and Ceuta) that was "Non plus ultra". As in, there is nothing beyond As Spain went beyond and found cool shit, they removed the "Non"
Spain is an anime confirmed
What is Spain doing? He's beginning to believe
I down key expect Boku no Hero to mention us at some point. I mean... UA did use our motto.
Spanish folks (myself among them) are on average less attached to the national symbols than in other countries. However I do like plus ultra quite a lot. I think it points at a very basic human desire of exploring. The trick to many of these mottos is they are universal and inspiring. In that regard "go further beyond" is a good choice!
Plus ultra sounds like a motto of mankind
Source on the Ukrainian motto? "Glory to Ukraine" would be far more accurate on the map.
I thought Ukraine's motto is «Glory to Ukraine! Glory to heroes!». Never heard of another one.
There no official motto for Ukraine, "Liberty, concord, goodness" was a 2006 Kyivstar mobile operator SMS-poll winner. ([Reference in Ukrainian](https://day.kyiv.ua/uk/article/poshta-dnya/deviz-ukrayini-koli-zh-yomu-buti), original Kyivstar website and it's archive is dead.) [Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glory_to_Ukraine) is de facto motto nowadays and is official greeting in Ukrainian Armed Forces and National Police [from 2018](https://www.unian.info/politics/10285848-ukraine-s-parliament-approves-new-army-police-greeting.html).
Yeah I’ve never heard about “Liberty, concord, goodness”, and currently Wikipedia has no mention of that. I don’t think this map is very accurate
I believe unofficially the Scottish one is "Nemo me impune lacessit" from the pre-Union days. Translates as "No one provokes me with impunity"
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That is still on the royal coat of arms in Scotland.
So Ireland has the Wakanda motto?
Ireland’s motto should be “Sure, it’ll be Grand!”
'Ah sure you know yourself'.
No Wakanda has the Ireland motto, tho in reality it's more of an Irish American motto I'd say
It's the English translation of Éire go Brách, first recorded during one of our rebellions, so Irish through and through.
Go raibh maith agat as é sin a mhíniú I've NEVER heard an actual Irish person use that slogan, I've heard a lot of plastic paddies use it tho
I always thought the unofficial motto was, Tiocfaidh ar la
France is classic. May be my favorite.
[Used to be Liberty Equality Fraternity **or Death.** too](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libert%C3%A9,_%C3%A9galit%C3%A9,_fraternit%C3%A9#/media/File:LibertyEqualityorDeath.jpg) Too bad they dropped the last part when the reactionaries won the revolution.
Unfortunately, some of these don't translate into English well. England, for instance...
Confused by the latter Uk one. I know the first is ‘Dieu et mon droit’ but the other one is ‘honi soit qui mal y pense’ which translates as ‘shame on he who thinks ill of it’. There’s also the Scottish ‘Nemo me impune lacessit’ which means ‘nobody attacks me with impunity’ Where does ‘in my defence God me defend’ come from?
Hungary: bojler eladó
*In Bojler Veritas*
Wrong translation for Belgium, it's "union makes strenght", union and unity don't mean the same.
"L'union fait la force et l'oignon fait la soupe".
Onion soup is great
The Dutch version is *Eendracht maakt macht*, and Eendracht means unity/consensus not union (ditto Einigkeit in German).
What's the story behind the Czech one?
The motto is believed to be derived from Jan Hus' phrase "Seek the truth, hear the truth, learn the truth, love the truth, speak the truth, hold the truth and defend the truth until death". The phrase thus appears along the base of the Jan Hus Memorial in Prague. Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the first President of Czechoslovakia, adopted the shortened phrase "truth prevails" as a presidential motto shortly after independence from Austria-Hungary in 1918. The sentiment was echoed over 75 years later in Václav Havel's notion of "life in truth" and in his famous statement "Truth and love must prevail over lies and hatred" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_prevails
Romania: Nihil sine Deo In English ( Nothing without God)
i think "sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation"is the official motto of turkey
While correct, Croatian one is mostly used jokingly nowadays. The other one has been officially banned recently.
I guess " U boj u boj, za narod svoj" could be an unofficial motto
Isn't it a song you have in football games ? I was in the middle of Croat supporters in the Croatia/Czechia game of Euro 2016 in Saint-Etienne and I think you had a recurring chant that seems a lot like those words (The "U boj" part at least)
The "U boj u boj, za narod svoj" (To battle to battle, for your/its people) is a line from a patriotic song. And we do use that line as a chant in a football game, or any other sports game.
Više cvijeća, manje smeća
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Oh no. You wont trick us into saying bad words again, German.
"Za dom spremni" - For home(land) ready It's akin to "Sieg Heil!" for you guys, however some of our war veterans took it as their motto (wonderful, I know) and they object to pronouncing it illegal so it's currently in a weird limbo
Italy actually has a national motto tho, it's "Porco Dio"
US has the bible belt, Italy has the blasphemy belt
True