Ever to excel

"Ever to Excel" is the English translation of the Ancient Greek motto of Boston College: αιεν αριστευειν
It is derived from the sixth book of Homer's Iliad, in a speech Glaucus delivers to Diomedes. During a battle between the Greeks and Trojans, Diomedes is impressed by the bravery of a mysterious young man and demands to know his identity. Glaucus replies: "Hippolocus begat me. I claim to be his son, and he sent me to Troy with strict instructions: Ever to excel, to do better than others, and to bring glory to your forebears, who indeed were very great ... This is my ancestry; this is the blood I am proud to inherit."
Category:Boston College