E pluribus unum

E pluribus unum (/iː ˈplɜːrɪbəs ˈuːnəm/ ee PLUR-ib-əs OO-nəm, Classical Latin: [eː ˈpluːrɪbʊs ˈuːnʊ̃], Latin pronunciation: [e ˈpluribus ˈunum]) – Latin for "Out of many, one"[1][2] (also translated as "One out of many"[3] or "One from many"[4]) – is a traditional motto of the United States, appearing on the Great Seal along with Annuit cœptis (Latin for "he approves the undertaking [lit. 'things undertaken']") and Novus ordo seclorum (Latin for "New order of the ages") which appear on the reverse of the Great Seal; its inclusion on the seal was approved in an act of the U.S. Congress in 1782.[2] The first word of E pluribus unum is actually an abbreviation of the Latin preposition ex, meaning “out of.” While its status as national motto was for many years unofficial, E pluribus unum was still considered the de facto motto of the United States from its early history.[5] Eventually, the U.S. Congress passed an act in 1956 (H. J. Resolution 396), adopting "In God We Trust" as the official motto.[6]

That the phrase "E pluribus unum" has thirteen letters makes its use symbolic of the original Thirteen Colonies which rebelled against the rule of the Kingdom of Great Britain and became the first thirteen states, represented today as the thirteen stripes on the American flag.