Seal of West Virginia - wikipedia Seal of West Virginia Great Seal of the State of West Virginia Versions Reverse Historical coat of arms ( illustrated, 1876 ) Armiger State of West Virginia Adopted 1863 Motto Montani Semper Liberi Libertas E Fidelitate The Great Seal of the State of West Virginia was adopted in September 1863. The obverse center of the seal contains a boulder that has been inscribed June 20, 1863, the date West Virginia became a state. In front of the boulder lie two crossed rifles and a liberty cap as a symbol of the state 's fight for liberty. The two men on either side of the boulder represent agriculture and industry. On the left stands a farmer with an ax and plow before a cornstalk. On the other side stands a miner with a pickax, and behind him an anvil and sledge hammer. The outer ring contains the text `` State of West Virginia '' and the state 's motto `` Montani Semper Liberi '', ( `` Mountaineers are Always Free '' ; the state nickname is `` the Mountain State '' ). The reverse of the seal, also called the lesser seal, is the official seal of the Governor. Its motto reads `` Libertas E Fidelitate '' ( `` Liberty out of Fidelity '' ). Contents 1 Motto 2 See also 3 References 4 External links Motto Montani Semper Liberi ( Latin for `` Mountaineers are Always Free '' ) was adopted as the official motto of West Virginia in Article II, Section 2 - 7, of the state constitution signed in 1872. This article specifically states : `` ( t ) he present seal of the state, with its motto, `` Montani Semper Liberi, '' shall be the great seal of the state of West Virginia, and shall be kept by the secretary of state, to be used by him officially, as directed by law ``. The phrase was suggested as the motto by Joseph H. Diss Debar, the artist who created the state 's Great Seal. The seal as used in the form of a coat of arms on the state flag The seal of the Governor of West Virginia Montani Semper Liberi is also part of the coat of arms for the Colombian city of Bucaramanga. See also West Virginia portal Coat of Arms of the U.S. States Seals of the U.S. states Flag of West Virginia References Jump up ^ `` West Virginia Statistical Information '' ( PDF ). State of West Virginia. Retrieved 2014 - 06 - 20. Jump up ^ http://www.sos.wv.gov/public-services/execrecords/Pages/WestVirginiaStateSeal.aspx Jump up ^ `` Constitution of West Virginia ''. West Virginia Legislature. Retrieved 2014 - 06 - 20. External links The Great Seal of the State of West Virginia State seals of the United States States Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Great Seal of the United States Federal district Washington, D.C. Insular areas American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands State of West Virginia Charleston ( capital ) Topics Cities Towns Villages Census - designated places History Environment People Government Governors Delegations Colleges and universities Tourist attractions Seal of West Virginia Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Elections Media Newspapers Radio TV Insignia Coat of arms Flag Motto Seal Regions Allegheny Mountains Allegheny Plateau Baltimore - Washington Metropolitan Area Blue Ridge Charleston Metropolitan Area Cumberland Plateau Cumberland Mountains Eastern Panhandle Huntington Metropolitan Area North - Central West Virginia Northern Panhandle Potomac Highlands Ridge - and - Valley Appalachians Shenandoah Valley Southern West Virginia Metro areas Charleston Huntington Morgantown Martinsburg Parkersburg - Vienna Wheeling Winchester Weirton Largest cities Beckley Charleston Fairmont Huntington Martinsburg Morgantown Parkersburg Wheeling Weirton Counties Barbour Berkeley Boone Braxton Brooke Cabell Calhoun Clay Doddridge Fayette Gilmer Grant Greenbrier Hampshire Hancock Hardy Harrison Jackson Jefferson Kanawha Lewis Lincoln Logan Marion Marshall Mason McDowell Mercer Mineral Mingo Monongalia Monroe Morgan Nicholas Ohio Pendleton Pleasants Pocahontas Preston Putnam Raleigh Randolph Ritchie Roane Summers Taylor Tucker Tyler Upshur Wayne Webster Wetzel Wirt Wood Wyoming Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Seal_of_West_Virginia&oldid=855920873 '' Categories : Insignia of West Virginia United States state seals Coats of arms with pickaxes Coats of arms with firearms Coats of arms with the Phrygian cap Coats of arms with axes Coats of arms with hammers Coats of arms with ploughs Coats of arms with maize Coats of arms with buildings Coats of arms with cattle Coats of arms with trains Coats of arms with mountains Coats of arms with suns Coats of arms with sunrays Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Deutsch Español Français हिन्दी עברית Polski Русский Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 21 August 2018, at 18 : 30 ( UTC ). 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Question: what is the state motto for west virginia
Answer: "Montani Semper Liberi", ("Mountaineers are Always Free"