Maryland State Motto: Fatti Maschii, Parole Femine

Maryland's state motto is Fatti Maschii, Parole Femine, an Italian phrase meaning Manly Deeds, Womanly Words. It is the only U.S. state motto written in Italian — every other state uses English, Latin, French, Spanish, Hawaiian, Greek, or a Native American language.

The phrase was not invented for Maryland. It was the personal motto of the Calvert family, the Lords Baltimore who founded the colony. When King Charles I granted Maryland's royal charter in 1632, the Calvert family's Italian motto came with it, and it has been part of Maryland's official identity ever since.

The standard English translation is Manly Deeds, Womanly Words. This is the literal word-for-word version and appears in most official references.

Some sources and legislators have proposed Strong Deeds, Gentle Words as an alternative translation that captures the intent of the phrase without the gendered framing. In Italian, maschii and femine are adjectives that can describe qualities — strength and gentleness — rather than specifically referring to men and women. Both translations are linguistically defensible.

The official Italian text has not changed. The debate is about which English translation best represents the phrase for a modern audience.

The phrase Fatti Maschii, Parole Femine was the personal motto of the Calvert family long before Maryland existed. George Calvert, the 1st Baron Baltimore, petitioned King Charles I for a colonial charter in the New World. He died in April 1632 before the charter was formally issued. His son Cecil Calvert, the 2nd Baron Baltimore, received the grant and became Maryland's first proprietor.

Cecil Calvert brought the family's Italian motto with him into the colony's official design. The colonial seal carried the phrase on the reverse, paired with the Calvert and Crossland family arms — the same heraldry that appears on the Maryland state flag today. Using Italian for an aristocratic family motto was not unusual in Tudor and Stuart England; it reflected the influence of Renaissance culture on the English nobility.

Maryland's seal was set aside after the American Revolution. The heraldry of a British proprietary dynasty sat uncomfortably in a new republic, and Maryland used a different seal for several decades. In 1876, the Maryland General Assembly voted to restore the colonial Calvert design in full, including the Italian motto on the reverse. The seal in use today is continuous with that 1876 restoration.