Motto

The crest of Hogwarts School, featuring the motto: "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus".

"I wonder if all the elite wizarding families have a motto."

— Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student

A motto is a word or phrase used to describe the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation.

Mottos are usually included in heraldic achievements.

List of known mottos

Organisation mottos

Institution	Motto	Notes
Chudley Cannons	Let's all just keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best	Changed from "We shall conquer" in 1972 (the last time they had won the League Cup was in 1892).
Falmouth Falcons	Let us win, but if we cannot win, let us break a few heads	It reflected the Quidditch team's fierce and violent style of play.
Gringotts Wizarding Bank	Fortius quo fidelius	Latin for "strength through loyalty".
Gryffindor	Forti Animo Estote	Visible in the stained glass window in the Gryffindor common room.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry	Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus	Latin for "never tickle a sleeping dragon". A rough equivalent of "let sleeping dogs lie"; a practical piece of advice.
Ministry of Magic of Britain (under Death Eater control)	Magic is Might	It represented the idea that wizards and witches were inherently superior to Muggles; the motto was engraved at the base of a statue that was installed in the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic Headquarters after Voldemort took power in 1997.
Ministry of Magic of France	Incanté, Envouté, Conjuré	French for "Cast, Bewitched, Conjured". It mirrors the French national motto, "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité" ("Liberty, Equality, Fraternity") that originated with the French Revolution, around the same time the Ministry was established (1790).
Smeltings Academy	Caveat Smeltonia	Latin for "let them beware of those of Smeltings".
The Babberton Arms	Ne parcas nec spernas	Latin for "neither spare nor dispose".
Wizengamot	Ignorantia juris neminem excusat	Latin for "ignorance of law excuses no one". It is a brocard holding that one is bound by a law even if one does not know about it.

Family mottos

Family	Motto	Notes
Black	Toujours pur	French for "always pure". It reflected the family's espousal of pure-blood supremacist beliefs.
Lestrange	Corvus oculum corvi non eruit	Latin for "a crow will not pull out the eye of another crow". It refers to complete solidarity amongst a group of like-minded people regardless of consequences, and it is a play on the family emblem, a raven.
Malfoy	Sanctimonia vincet semper	Latin for "purity always conquers". It reflected the family's strongly beliefs in the concept of purity of blood.

Personal mottos

Individual	Motto	Notes
Amrose Swott	Ora et labora	Latin for "pray and work"; it comes from the Rule of Saint Benedict and it calls for combining contemplation with action.
Brian Gagwilde	Artium Magister	Latin for "Master of Arts"; it is used to refer to experts in the fields within the scope of the humanities and social sciences.
Gellert Grindelwald	Für das Größere Wohl	German for "For the Greater Good". Adopted by Grindelwald and by his followers (the Alliance) as a mission statement during the Global Wizarding War, expressing his belief that ultimately everyone would benefit from his plan to put Muggles under wizarding control.
Walter Aragon	Mens sana in corpore sano	Latin for "a sound mind in a healthy body"; it comes from the works of Ancient Roman poet Juvenal.

Behind the scenes

• When asked to elaborate on the history behind the unusual motto she chose for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, J. K. Rowling commented:

"You know the way that most school slogans are thing like persevere and nobility, charity and fidelity or something, it just amused me to give an entirely practical piece of advice for the Hogwarts school motto. Then a friend of mine who is a professor of Classics — my Latin was not up to the job, I did not think it should be cod Latin, it is good enough for cod Latin spells, that is they used to be a mixture of Latin and other things. When it came to a proper Latin slogan for the school I wanted it to be right, I went to him and asked him to translate. I think he really enjoyed it, he rang me up and said, "I think I found the exactly right word, 'Titillandus'", that was how that was dreamt up."

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (First appearance) (Appears on opening pages.)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film) (Appears in deleted scene(s))
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
• Quidditch Through the Ages
• Pottermore
• Harry Potter Limited Edition - The Paintings of Hogwarts: Masterpieces from the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Sets
• The Making of Harry Potter
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
• Hogwarts Legacy
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (Mentioned in History of Magic classes)