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E pluribus unum (/iːˈplɜːrɪbəsˈuːnəm/eePLUR-ih-bəsOO-nəm,Classical Latin:[eːˈpluːrɪbʊsˈuːnʊ̃],Latin:[eˈpluribusˈunum]) (Latin for 'out of many, one',[1][2] or 'one out of many)[3] is a traditional motto of theUnited States, appearing on theGreat Seal along withAnnuit cœptis (Latin forhe approves the undertaking) andNovus ordo seclorum (Latin fornew order of the ages) which appear on the reverse of the Great Seal; its inclusion on the seal was suggested byPierre Eugene du Simitiere and approved in anact of theCongress of the Confederation in 1782.[2] While its status as national motto was for many years unofficial,E pluribus unum was still considered thede facto motto of the United States from its early history.[4] Eventually, the U.S. Congress passed an act in 1956 (H. J. Resolution 396), adopting "In God We Trust" as theofficial motto.[5]
That the phraseE pluribus unum has thirteen letters makes its use symbolic of the originalThirteen Colonies which rebelled against the rule of theKingdom of Great Britain and became the first thirteen states, represented today as the thirteen stripes on theAmerican flag.
The meaning of the phrase originated from the concept that out of the union of the original Thirteen Colonies emerged a new single nation.[7] It is emblazoned across thescroll and clenched in the eagle's beak on the Great Seal of the United States.[7][8]
The 13-letter motto was suggested in 1776 by Pierre Eugene du Simitiere to the committee responsible for developing the seal. At the time of theAmerican Revolution, the phrase appeared regularly on the title page of the London-basedGentleman's Magazine, founded in 1731,[9][10] which collected articles from many sources into one periodical. This usage in turn can be traced back to the London-basedHuguenotPeter Anthony Motteux, who had employed the adage for hisThe Gentleman's Journal, or the Monthly Miscellany (1692–1694). The phrase is similar to a Latin translation of a variation ofHeraclitus's tenth fragment, "The one is made up of all things, and all things issue from the one" (ἐκ πάντων ἓν καὶ ἐξ ἑνὸς πάντα). A variant of the phrase was used in "Moretum", a poem belonging to theAppendix Virgiliana, describing (on the surface at least) the making ofmoretum, a kind of herb and cheese spread related to modernpesto. In the poem text,color est e pluribus unus describes the blending of colors into one.St Augustine used a variant of the phrase,ex pluribus unum facere (make one out of many), in hisConfessions.[11] But it seems more likely[according to whom?] that the phrase refers toCicero's paraphrase of Pythagoras in hisDe Officiis, as part of his discussion of basic family and social bonds as the origin of societies and states, "When each person loves the other as much as himself, it makes one out of many (unum fiat ex pluribus), as Pythagoras wishes things to be in friendship."[12]
WhileAnnuit cœptis andNovus ordo seclorum appear on the reverse side of the Great Seal,E pluribus unum appears on the obverse side of the seal (designed byCharles Thomson), the image of which is used as the national emblem of the United States, and appears on official documents such as passports. It also appears on theseal of the president, thevice president, theUnited States Congress, theUnited States House of Representatives, theUnited States Senate, and theUnited States Supreme Court.
| DimeE pluribus unum engraving. | |
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| Obverse: Portrait ofFranklin D. Roosevelt, year andUS national motto (In God We Trust) | Reverse:E pluribus unum, olive branch, torch and oak branch, face-value and country |
The first coins withE pluribus unum were dated 1786 and struck under the authorization of New Jersey by Thomas Goadsby and Albion Cox inRahway, New Jersey.[13] The motto had no New Jersey linkage but was likely an available die that had been created by Walter Mould the previous year for a failed federal coinage proposal.[14] Mould was also authorized by New Jersey to strike state coppers with this motto and did so beginning in early 1787 inMorristown, New Jersey. Lt. Col.Seth Read ofUxbridge, Massachusetts was said to have been instrumental in havingE pluribus unum placed on U.S. coins.[15][failed verification] Seth Read and his brotherJoseph Read had been authorized by the Massachusetts General Court to mint coppers in 1786. In March 1786, Seth Read petitioned theMassachusetts General Court, both the House and the Senate, for a franchise to mint coins, both copper and silver, and "it was concurred".[16][17]E pluribus unum, written in capital letters, is included on most U.S. currency, with some exceptions to the letter spacing (such as the reverse of thedime). It is also embossed on the edge of thedollar coin. (SeeUnited States coinage and paper bills in circulation).
According to theU.S. Treasury, the mottoE pluribus unum was first used on U.S. coinage in 1795, when the reverse of thehalf-eagle ($5 gold) coin presented the main features of the Great Seal of the United States.E pluribus unum is inscribed on the Great Seal's scroll. The motto was added to certain silver coins in 1798, and soon appeared on all of the coins made out of precious metals (gold and silver). In 1834, it was dropped from most of the gold coins to mark the change in the standard fineness of the coins. In 1837, it was dropped from the silver coins, marking the era of the Revised Mint Code. TheCoinage Act of 1873 made the inscription a requirement of law upon the coins of the United States.E pluribus unum appears on all U.S. coins currently being manufactured, includingpresidential dollar coins whose production started in 2007, where it is inscribed on the edge along with "In God We Trust" and the year and mint mark. After the revolution,Rahway, New Jersey became the home of the first national mint to create a coin bearing the inscriptionE pluribus unum.
In a quality control error in early 2007, thePhiladelphia Mint issued some one-dollar coins withoutE pluribus unum on the rim; these coins have since become collectibles.
The 2009 and 2010pennies feature a new design on the back, which displays the phraseE pluribus unum in larger letters than in previous years.[1]
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