E pluribus unum (; )—
Latin for "
Out of many, one" (alternatively translated as "
One out of many" or "
One from many")—is a phrase on the
Seal of the United States, along with
Annuit cœptis (Latin for "He/she/it approves (has approved) of the undertakings") and
Novus ordo seclorum (Latin for "New Order of the Ages"), and adopted by an Act of Congress in 1782. Never codified by law,
E Pluribus Unum was considered a
de facto motto of the United States until 1956 when the
United States Congress passed an
act (H. J. Resolution 396), adopting "
In God we trust" as the
official motto.