Ubi panis ibi patria
Encyclopedia
Ubi panis ibi patria is a Latin expression meaning "Where there is bread, there is (my) country" (or home, or homeland). According to J. Hector St. John de Crèvecœur in "What is an American", the third of his Letters from an American Farmer
, this is the motto of all emigrants
/immigrants
. It is not clear whether this is from Crèvecœur's quill or somebody else's.
In any case, it is reminiscent in its form of another motto that may have served as a model, Ubi bene ibi patria ("Where I am at ease, there is (my) country"; lit. where good, there fatherland), used by those who put their well-being above patriotism. This latter expression in turn reminds of a verse (Teucer, fr. 291) of the Roman tragic poet Marcus Pacuvius (ca. 220-130 BC) quoted by Cicero
(106 BC – 43 BC): Patria est ubicumque est bene (45 BC, Tusculanae Quaestiones
, V, 37, 108 , V, 37, 108).
Letters from an American Farmer
Letters From An American Farmer And Sketches Of Eighteenth-Century America was published by Jean de Crèvecœur in 1782 but it was written before the American Revolution. Crèvecœur provided one of the first examples of American literature to Europeans....
, this is the motto of all emigrants
Emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
/immigrants
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
. It is not clear whether this is from Crèvecœur's quill or somebody else's.
In any case, it is reminiscent in its form of another motto that may have served as a model, Ubi bene ibi patria ("Where I am at ease, there is (my) country"; lit. where good, there fatherland), used by those who put their well-being above patriotism. This latter expression in turn reminds of a verse (Teucer, fr. 291) of the Roman tragic poet Marcus Pacuvius (ca. 220-130 BC) quoted by Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
(106 BC – 43 BC): Patria est ubicumque est bene (45 BC, Tusculanae Quaestiones
Tusculanae Quaestiones
The Tusculanae Disputationes , is a series of books written by Cicero, around 45 BC, attempting to popularise Stoic philosophy in Ancient Rome...
, V, 37, 108 , V, 37, 108).