The university mottos are put forward with the foundation of the modern universites. A university motto embodies the special cultural characteristics, spiritual ideas as well as ethical connotation of a universiry as a social organization.Under the background of the market economy and globalization, the university mottos should not only inherit the Chinese traditional ethical thoughts, but also give them new connotation, with which the Chinese traditional culture can be sublated and surpassed so as to play a better role in carrying out active exploration.