St. John Ambulance - Name and Mottos

Name and Mottos

In the phrase "Order of St John", St is an abbreviation for Saint, and corporate and national logos began to reflect this as a change from St. (with the dot) in 2006-7. (See Abbreviation article.)

The unusual name of the organisation has been known to cause confusion to members of the public, and many people often assume that the "St John" prefix indicates a church related organisation. In fact, in its modern form, the prefix refers to the Order of St. John (which in fact is a Christian organisation) and is used as an adjective. However, it is often assumed to be used as a noun, and this leads to the organisation being frequently incorrectly termed "St John's Ambulance", a long standing source of irritation to some members. This is further perpetuated since members on duty are often referred to collectively as "St Johns". In terms of the Order, the original allegiance was to John the Baptist; this allegiance is not however inherited by St John Ambulance.

The Order's mottoes are Pro fide (For the faith) and Pro utilitate hominum (For the service of mankind). The 'Priory of England and The Islands' has recently replaced the Latin mottoes with a single English sentence: "For the faith and in the service of humanity", which some see as a controversial move. However in December 2006 it was agreed by Priory Council that this move should be partially reversed and the Latin mottoes were reintroduced in the Cadet Code of Chivalry.