モットー

motto is the Italian source form behind モットー, and Merriam-Webster traces English motto to Italian, from Late Latin muttum and Latin muttire, to mutter. Treccani lists Italian motto as a short saying, maxim, heraldic inscription, or word. English has used motto since the fifteenth century for words put on coats of arms, seals, coins, and later for personal principles. Japanese took モットー mainly through English in the Meiji period. Kotobank's Seisenban Nihon Kokugo Daijiten cites Shimamura Hogetsu's 文芸上の自然主義, 1908, with モットー. It joined a set of modern public-language words such as スローガン, 標語, キャッチフレーズ, and ポリシー. The meaning moved from an inscribed maxim toward a personal or organizational rule. Today モットー is common in job interviews, school profiles, company websites, and self-introductions. Digital Daijisen gives 日常の行為の目標や方針 as the definition. English motto can still refer to a state motto such as In God We Trust or a heraldic line on a shield. Japanese more often means a personal stance or work habit, close to 座右の銘 but less formal. Example: 私のモットーは早く返事をすることだ.