The Motto of Sevilla

The motto of Seville is "NO8DO". The "8" is shaped like a skein of wool, or, madeja in Spanish. The motto, therefore, is a rebus, reading "NO madeja DO," a play on the sentence, "No me ha dejado," or "she [the city] has not abandoned me [the king]".

The motto, according to one legend, refers to the city's support of King Alphonse X in a 13th-century war with his son, Don Sancho. Another places the phrase in the mouth of Ferdinand III while riding into the city after expelling the Moors in 1248. This motto is seen in the city flag and throughout Seville, inscribed on manhole covers, and on some street signs.