"Ever to Excel" is the English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 translation of the Ancient Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 αἰὲν ἀριστεύειν ("aien aristeuein"). It has been used as motto

Motto

A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...

 by a number of different educational institutions.

History

It is derived from the sixth book of Homer

Homer

In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...

's Iliad

Iliad

The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...

, (Iliad 6. 208) in a speech Glaucus

Glaucus (soldier)

Glaucus was a son of Hippolochus and a grandson of Bellerophon. He was a captain in the Lycian army under the command of his close friend and cousin Sarpedon. The Lycians in the Trojan War were allies of Troy...

 delivers to Diomedes

Diomedes

Diomedes or Diomed is a hero in Greek mythology, known for his participation in the Trojan War.He was born to Tydeus and Deipyle and later became King of Argos, succeeding his maternal grandfather, Adrastus. In Homer's Iliad Diomedes is regarded alongside Ajax as one of the best warriors of all...

. During a battle between the Greeks

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 and Trojans

Troy

Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...

, 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

Troy

Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...

 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."

Usage as a motto

It has been the motto of a number of educational institutions, including:

• The University of St Andrews
  University of St Andrews
  The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
  
  , founded 1410
• Caistor Grammar School
  Caistor Grammar School
  Caistor Grammar School is a selective school and academy in the English town of Caistor in the county of Lincolnshire. It was founded in 1630, and has since grown to be one of the most respected and high performing schools in the East of England. The school has been awarded specialist sports and...
  
  , founded 1631
• The Edinburgh Academy
  Edinburgh Academy
  The Edinburgh Academy is an independent school which was opened in 1824. The original building, in Henderson Row on the northern fringe of the New Town of Edinburgh, Scotland, is now part of the Senior School...
  
  , founded 1824
• Boston College
  Boston College
  Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
  
  , founded 1863
• Kelvinside Academy
  Kelvinside Academy
  Kelvinside Academy is a private school in the City of Glasgow, Scotland, founded in 1878. It has a capacity of 640 pupils and spans two years of Junior Start , six years of Junior School , and seven years of Senior School , comprising fifteen years in all...
  
  
• Old Scona Academic High School
  Old Scona Academic High School
  Old Scona Academic High School, often referred to as Old Scona or OSA, is a high school located in the Old Strathcona district of Edmonton, Alberta. It is a small academic high school with a population of approximately 340 to 360 students...
  
  , founded 1908