Dum spiro spero

Dum spiro spero means "While I breathe, I hope" in Latin and is generally attributed to Cicero.

It is a motto of various places and families.

States and Towns

The notable origin of the motto is St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. Its attribution to Saint Andrew and his bones being taken to this small fishing village on the North Sea, contributed to its direct linkage between the saying, the town, the University of St Andrews and the Saint.

It is also the state motto of South Carolina, adopted in 1776. On March 26, 1776, the Provincial Congress of South Carolina set up an independent government, and the motto formed a part of official great seal, created by W. H. Drayton.

The quote is also found on the Citadel Ring (The Military College of South Carolina) in the state seal for South Carolina.

Dum Spiro Spero was the state motto for the Kingdom of Sarawak.

Dum Spiro Spero is the motto of the Principality of Hutt River, and appears on their coat of arms.

Families

Dum spiro spero is the family motto of numerous families worldwide, including:

• the Scottish Clan MacLennan, who have used it since at least the sixteenth century, and many claim that this motto was used by the MacLennans from the thirteenth century.

• the Liversidge family, and variants, i.e. Liversage, Liversedge, etc, who draw their name from Liversedge in West Yorkshire, England.

• the Harigon family, who adopted it because over many years of peril and distress they hoped for a land of many sheep and pastures. They moved to New Zealand and harbor sheep that have been neglected on their farm, named after this famous saying.

• the Stinton family, who display the motto on their coat of arms.

• the Baker family, who display the motto on their family crest, along with the 3 white swans.

• the Bushell, Bushnell and Bussell family, possibly since they held a family seat in Somerset, England. Some believe that the usage pre-dates other usages of the motto in the context of a family motto.

• the Lindsay family of Scotland, who also use the motto Endure Forte. These are engraved in the garden walls at Edzell Castle in Angus, Scotland.

• the Roberts family, whose coat of arms is azure, a chevron argent, with an eagle crest and unicorns for supporters.

• the Salmon family, whose origins are in Scotland, display the motto underneath the family shield, which bears six fleurs-de-lis and six salmon (fish).

• the Swainson familly, whose coat of arms bears a lions head, six diamonds and a speared boars head also display the moto below their sheild.
• The Williamson family whose coat of arms has a red shield and three fluers-de-lis with crown and hawk and the motto underneath,this family name also has direct links to William the Conqueror.
• Woodes Rogers, famous pirate hunter & Governor of the Bahamas during the Golden Age of Piracy, displays this motto above his head in a well preserved original family portrait (dated 1729) filled with emblems of his life & career.

Dum Spiro Spero is also the family motto of the arms of these families:

• the Bale family
• the Casement family
• the Copperwheat family
• the Cotter (O'Cotter) family
• the Cutts family
• the Cutler family
• the Davi(e)s family
• the Dillon family
• the Doran family, since 1567
• the Durden family, since 1066
• the Falls family
• the Favron family
• the Garland family
• the Glaze and Glazewood families
• the Hoar (Hoare) family
• the Hardinge family
• the Högqvist family
• the Knott family
• the Lennon family
• the Manser family
• the Mason family
• the McElvaney family
• the McRoberts family
• the Messel family of Nymans, East Sussex
• the Morgan family
• the Pearson family
• the Partridge family
• the Sharp(e) family
• the Sparks family
• the Spearman family
• the Storrow family
• the Whitehead family
• the Snowden family
• the von Meyer family
• the Whited family

Organizations

Dum spiro spero is the motto of the Asthma Sinus Allergy Program at Greater Baltimore Medical Center [ASAP@GBMC] in Towson, Maryland.

References

Dum Spiro Spero is also used for the Roberts Family.