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As long as there have been cities, towns, villages, and hamlets, there have been monikers and mottos to define, describe, and differentiate them.

Whereas monikers are synonymous with a city, and often used in lieu of the actual name, mottos are created primarily to enhance a city's economic, cultural, historical, or aesthetic value.

In an age of competitive advertising and branding, both official and unofficial mottos and monikers are an effective way to express a city’s style or personality, highlight its main appeal, and strengthen its decidedly urban or “small town” identity.

The following lists comprise the 350 or so mottos and monikers nominated from a field of approximately 1,200 in TaglineGuru’s City Branding Survey. Several cities are represented more than once on each list, reflecting a range of brand expressions.

U.S. City Mottos

A Whole Lotta Texas Goin’ On!	Abilene, TX
It’ll Make You Smile	Adair, IA
Good For You, Albuquerque	Albuquerque, NM
Where the People Are Warm Even When the Weather Isn’t	Andover, KS
Big City, Southern Hospitality	Atlanta, GA
The City Too Busy to Hate	Atlanta, GA
Always Turned On	Atlantic City, NJ
Auburn: More Than You Can Imagine	Auburn, WA
Oasis in the Sun	Avenal, CA
Keep Austin Weird	Austin, TX
The City That Reads	Baltimore, MD
Believe	Baltimore, MD
You’re Not Dreamin’, You’re in Beaman	Beaman, IA
Let Us Surprise You	Bellingham, WA
Highest of the Heights	Broadview Heights, OH
Boost Buffalo	Buffalo, NY
It’s Good for You	Buffalo, NY
It’s Not the End of the Earth, But You Can See It From Here	Bushnell, SD
Where Northern Enterprise Meets Southern Hospitality	Cairo, IL
You Can Do Better in Cando	Cando, ND
History for the Taking	Carson City, NV
What We Dream, We Do	Charlotte, NC
So Very Virginia	Charlottesville, VA
The Only Cherokee in the Cherokee Strip	Cherokee, OK
Urbs In Horto (City in a Garden)	Chicago, IL
I Will	Chicago, IL
In Season Every Season	Clemson, SC
The Best Location in the Nation	Cleveland, OH
Cleveland Rocks!	Cleveland, OH
We Create Community	Colorado Springs, CO
Where Friendliness Flows	Columbia, SC
More Than You Dreamed	Columbus, OH
Ohio’s Sharpest Corner	Conneaut, OH
One Mile Square and All There	Covina, CA
Live Large. Think Big	Dallas, TX
Big Beach, Big Fun	Daytona Beach, FL
The Pride of the Prairie	Decatur, IL/Hazelton, ND
Where the Surf Meets the Turf	Del Mar, CA
It’s a Great Time in Detroit!	Detroit, MI
Where the Name Just Says It All	Devine, TX
Where Yee-Ha Meets Olé	Eagle Pass, TX
The Pride Shows	Easley, SC
We’re Always Up to Something Fun!	Eau Claire, WI
Where the Sun Spends the Winter	El Centro, CA
Make History on the Texas Border	El Paso, TX
More Than Just a Pretty Beach	Encinitas, CA
The Way Texas Used To Be	Fayetteville, TX
Where the Stars Come Out to Play	Fort Davis, TX
Where the West Begins	Fort Worth, TX
Where History Never Gets Old	Fredericksburg, VA
Fresno: Smile When You Say That	Fresno, CA
The City That Time Forgot	Galena, IL/Baldwin Park, CA/New Orleans, LA
The Town That Made Tulsa Famous	Glenpool, OK
It’s the Climate	Grants Pass, OR
Where Your Ship Comes In	Gulfport, MS
The Town Without a Frown	Happy, TX
Twenty Lakes in Twenty Minutes	Harrison, MI
Get ‘Er Done	Havre, MT
Town Without a Toothache	Hereford, TX
The Sweetest Place on Earth	Hershey, PA
Where Everybody is Somebody	Hico, TX
Ha’aheo No ‘O Honolulu (Honolulu Pride)	Honolulu, HI
Houston’s Hot!	Houston, TX
The Real Texas	Houston, TX
Where the Trails Start and the Buck Stops	Independence, MO
Where Florida Begins	Jacksonville, FL
Make It a Good Place to Live In	Kansas City, MO
Lose Your Heart to the Hills	Kerrville, TX
If It Is To Be Me, It Is Up To Me	Kinross Township, MI
Third Oldest City in Oregon	Lafayette, OR
It’s Always Been the Place	Lake Geneva, WI
Jewel of the Hills	La Mesa, CA
What Happens Here, Stays Here	Las Vegas, NV
How About Doin’ Some Time in Leavenworth?	Leavenworth, KS
The First Town of the First State	Lewes, DE
Livable, Lovable Lodi	Lodi, CA
Hip Is Here!	Long Beach, CA
We’ve Got It	Louisville, KY
An Unexpected Pleasure	Lyons, KS
The Town That Loves Company	Mackinaw City, MI
Where People Care	Malabar, FL
Rollin’ on the River	Manchester, OH
The Hub of the Universe	Marion, IL/Boston, MA
A Slice of Heaven on Earth	Mayfield, UT
Where Horses Have the Right of Way	McKinleyville, CA
Where Chiefs Meet	Meeteetse, WY
Right On Top, Not Down Under	Melbourne, IA
The Sky’s the Limit	Midland, TX
West Texas Adventure	Midland, TX
Genuine Milwaukee	Milwaukee, WI
Timeless Beauty...Ageless Fun	Natchez, MS
Newark, On a Roll	Newark, NJ
The City That Never Sleeps	New York City, NY
Life. Celebrated Daily.	Norfolk, VA
A Place for All Seasons	Northport, NY
Only Oakland	Oakland, CA
Rare. Well Done.	Omaha, NE
O! is for Omaha	Omaha, NE
The End is Just the Beginning	Oregon City, OR
It’s All the Name Implies	Paradise/Pleasanton, CA
Almost Heaven	Paw Paw, WV
Where the Odds Are With You	Peculiar, MO
Philadelphia Isn’t As Bad As Philadelphians Say It Is	Philadelphia, PA
The Place That Loves You Back	Philadelphia, PA
Moves Mountains	Pikeville, KY
All the Civilization You Need	Pinedale, WY
Welcome to the Good Life	Porterville, CA
The City That Works	Portland, OR
Where the Bald Eagles Soar and the Carp Drops!	Prairie du Chien, WI
Southern Part of Heaven	Raleigh, NC
Real. America. Up Close.	Rapid City, ND
Climate Best by Government Test	Redwood City, CA
With Time for You	Richmond, MI
One City, Our City	Richmond, VA
The Aliens Aren’t the Only Reason to Visit	Roswell, NM
There’s More Than Meets the Arch	St. Louis, MO
Middle of the Mitten	St. Louis, MO
Always in Season	St. Petersburg, FL
Something to Remember	San Antonio, TX
It’s a Great Day in San Bernardino	San Bernardino, CA
Where It’s Good To Be Alive	San Clemente, CA
City with Sol	San Diego, CA
The City That Refused to Die	Sanford, ME
Only in San Francisco	San Francisco, CA
The City That Knows How	San Francisco, CA
City with a Mission	San Gabriel, CA
San Jose Is Growing Up	San Jose, CA
Where the Swallows Return	San Juan Capistrano, CA
Santa Ana: The Spirit of Change	Santa Ana, CA
The City Different	Santa Fe, NM
Where the Trout Leap in Main Street	Saratoga, WY
Come Live Where You Play	Saratoga Springs, UT
The West’s Most Western Town	Scottsdale, AZ
More Than Just a Song	Shenandoah, TX
Named For the Turn of a Card	Show Low, AZ
The Natural Place to Visit	Sitka, AK
The Place to Watch	Skowhegan, ME
Live the Legends	South Bend / Mishawaka, IN
We’ve Got a Lot To Give	Spokane, WA
Where Nature Smiles for Seven Miles	Spring Lake, MI
Dear Hearts and Gentle People	Swanton, NE
Soul of the Southwest	Taos, NM
Twice as Nice	Texarkana, AR
Key to a Continent	Ticonderoga, NY
Time Spent in Timewell is Time Well Spent	Timewell, IL
The Town Too Tough to Die	Tombstone, AZ
To the Stars Through Difficulty	Topeka, KS
Try Turlock First	Turlock, CA
Clearly Texas	Uvalde, TX
Take Me to the River	Vicksburg, MS
Living with a Mystery	Villisca, IA
The Richest Place on Earth	Virginia City, NV
People Say We’re Old-Fashioned. We Hope So.	Virginia City, MT
From Solid Roots -- Strong Branches	Walker, MI
The City That Was So Nice They Named It Twice	Walla Walla, WA
City Living, DC Style	Washington, D.C.
The Coldest Spot in Iowa	Washta, IA
Cares More, Shares More	Whittemore, IA
Wichita Đ We Got the Goods	Wichita, KS
You’re Something Special in Winston-Salem	Winston-Salem, NC
Family Country	Yakima, WA
Experience Our Sense of Yuma	Yuma, AZ

U.S. City Monikers

The World’s Largest Chee-to	Algona, IA
Anchortown	Anchorage, AK
City of Lights	Anchorage, AK
Crabtown	Annapolis, MD
The Big A	Atlanta, GA
Hotlanta	Atlanta, GA
Dogwood City	Atlanta, GA
The Big Peach	Atlanta, GA
Atlanta: City of Peace	Atlanta, GA
Spamtown, USA	Austin, MN
Live Music Capital of the World	Austin, TX
Charm City	Baltimore, MD
America’s Comeback City	Baltimore/Cleveland/Detroit
Cow Chip Capital	Beaver, OK
Berzerkeley	Berkeley, CA
The Playground of the South	Biloxi, MS
The Pittsburgh of the South	Birmingham, AL
Beantown	Boston, MA
The Cradle of Liberty	Boston, MA
The Nickel City	Buffalo, NY
The Big Gun	Canon, GA
The Graveyard of the Atlantic	Cape Hatteras, NC
City of Five Seasons	Cedar Rapids, IA
Shampoo-Banana	Champaign-Urbana, IL
High-Tech Oasis of the Silicon Desert	Chandler, AZ
Palmetto City	Charleston, SC
The Big Sweet Grass Basket	Charleston, SC
Chemicalville	Charleston, WV
Crunkville	Charlotte, NC
Dynamo of Dixie	Chattanooga, TN
Chat Town	Chattanooga, TN
The Windy City	Chicago, IL
Chi Town	Chicago, IL
City of Big Shoulders	Chicago, IL
Second City	Chicago, IL
The Nati	Cincinnati, OH
Cincy	Cincinnati, OH
Porkopolis	Cincinnati, OH
Mistake on the Lake	Cleveland, OH
America’s North Coast	Cleveland, OH
The Capital of Southern Hospitality	Columbia, SC
Athens of the Prairie	Columbus, IN
Test Market, USA	Columbus, OH
Whiskers	Crestwood, KY
The Big D	Dallas, TX
The Texas Star	Dallas, TX
The Metroplex	Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
The Quad Cities	Davenport, IA/Bettendorf, IA/Molline, IL/Rock Island, IL
The Gem City	Dayton, OH
America’s Friendliest City	Delphos, OH
The Mile High City	Denver, CO
Gateway to the Rockies	Denver, CO
Motown	Detroit, MI
Motor City	Detroit, MI
Hitsville, USA	Detroit, MI
Hockeytown, USA	Detroit, MI
The Renaissance City	Detroit, MI
Daytwah	Detroit, MI
The Wickedest Little City in America	Dodge City, KS
The Cherry Pit Spitting Capital of the World	Eau Claire, MI
Home of the Catfish Stomp	Elgin, SC
Poison Oak Capital of the World	Forestville, CA
Venice of America	Fort Lauderdale, FL
Cowtown	Fort Worth, TX/Columbus, OH
Hogtown	Gainesville, FL
America’s Biggest Small Town	Galesburg, IL
Drunk Driving Capital of America	Gallup, NM
The Steel City	Gary, IN
Home of the Candy Dance	Genoa, NV
Hometown, USA	Glens Falls, NY/Verona, WI
Goat Ropin’ Capital of the World	Gotebo, OK
Home of 911	Haleyville, AL
Birthplace of Kool-Aid	Hastings, NE
Chocolate Town	Hershey, PA
Hollyweird	Hollywood, CA
Tinseltown	Hollywood, CA
Space City	Houston, TX
Clutch City	Houston, TX
The Bayou City	Houston, TX
Surf City, USA	Huntington Beach, CA
Rocket City	Huntsville, AL
Naptown	Indianapolis, IN/Annapolis, MD
Indiana-No-Place	Indianapolis, IN
America’s Most Vertical City	Jerome, AZ
Kazoo (K’zoo)	Kalamazoo, MI
Little Hollywood	Kanab, UT
Heart of America	Kansas City, KS
The Dog Mushing Center of the World	Knik, AK
Sin City	Las Vegas, NV
Lost Wages	Las Vegas, NV
Glitter Gulch	Las Vegas, NV
The Land of Oz	Liberal, KS
Home of Susie the Duck	Lodi, WI
La-La Land	Los Angeles, CA
City of Angels	Los Angeles, CA
The Big Orange	Los Angeles, CA
Mad City	Madison, WI
The Little Apple	Manhattan, KS
Birthplace/Home of the Blues	Memphis, TN
Birthplace of Rock ‘n Roll	Memphis, TN
Gateway to the Americas	Miami, FL
Vice City	Miami, FL
Little Cuba	Miami, FL
Brew City	Milwaukee, WI
City of Lakes	Minneapolis, MN
The Mini Apple	Minneapolis, MN
The Twin Cities	Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
Middletown	Muncie, IN
Music City USA	Nashville, TN
The Third Coast	Nashville, TN
Country Music Capital of the World	Nashville, TN
The Protestant Vatican	Nashville, TN
Buckle of the Bible Belt	Nashville, TN
The Big Easy	New Orleans, LA
Nawlins	New Orleans, LA
NOLA	New Orleans, LA
The Crescent City	New Orleans, LA
The Queen of the Mississippi	New Orleans, LA
The Big Apple	New York City, NY
Gotham	New York City, NY
The Empire City	New York City, NY
Capital of the World	New York City, NY
The City	Oklahoma City/San Francisco
City of Roses	Pasadena, CA/Portland, OR
The City of Brotherly Love	Philadelphia, PA
Philly	Philadelphia, PA
Quaker City	Philadelphia, PA
The Big Scrapple	Philadelphia, PA
Valley of the Sun	Phoenix, AZ
The Other Phoenix	Phoenix, OR
The ‘Burgh	Pittsburgh, PA
Iron City	Pittsburgh, PA
Hangtown	Placerville, CA
Beehive of Industry	Providence, RI
The Biggest Little City in the World	Reno, NV
The Neon Babylon	Reno, NV
Snapshot City	Rochester, NY
Ra-Cha-Cha	Rochester, NY
City of Trees	Sacramento, CA
Ancient City	St. Augustine, FL
Gateway to the West	St. Louis, MO
Mound City	St. Louis, MO
City of Witches	Salem, MA
San Antone	San Antonio, TX
America’s Finest City	San Diego, CA
City in Motion	San Diego, CA
Baghdad by the Bay	San Francisco, CA
The City by the Bay	San Francisco, CA
Everybody’s Favorite City	San Francisco, CA
Fog City	San Francisco, CA
The Golden Gate City	San Francisco, CA
The Capital of Silicon Valley	San Jose, CA
SLO Town	San Louis Obispo, CA
Dogtown	Santa Monica, CA
The Soo	Sault Ste. Marie, MI
The Nylon Capital of the World	Seaford, DE
The Emerald City	Seattle, WA/Wichita, KS
Jet City	Seattle, WA
Gateway to the Plains	Sioux Falls, SD
Sparkle City	Spartanburg, SC
Spoklahoma	Spokane, WA
Spotucky	Spokane, WA
Spokan’t	Spokane, WA
The Land of Lincoln	Springfield, IL
America’s #1 Wired City	Tacoma, WA
Tackyoma	Tacoma, WA
America’s Next Greatest City	Tampa, FL
The Old Pueblo	Tucson, AZ
Red Carpet City of the South	Vicksburg, MS
Washington – It’s a Capital City!	Washington, D.C.
Winnemucca – City of Paved Streets	Winnemucca, NV
The Palm Springs of Washington	Yakima, WA

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