E Pluribus Unum, << ee PLUR uh buhs YOO nuhm, >> is the Latin motto on the face of the Great Seal of the United States (see Great Seal of the United States). This phrase means out of many, one. It refers to the creation of one nation, the United States, out of 13 colonies. It is equally appropriate to today’s federal system. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, members of the first committee for the selection of the seal, suggested the motto in 1776. It can be traced back to the Epistles of the ancient Roman poet Horace. Since 1873, the law requires that this motto appear on one side of every United States coin that is minted.
