This article explores and brings together inspiring words by women from history.
Female Motivational Quotes reflect their unique experiences, struggles and thoughts.
Female Motivational Quotes – Ancient Era (Before 500 AD)
- “I will not be triumphed over.” – Cleopatra (69 BC – 30 BC), last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt.
- “Although they are only breath, words which I command are immortal.” – Sappho (630 – 570 BC), ancient Greek poetess from the island of Lesbos.
- “Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all.” – Hypatia of Alexandria (c. 360 – 415 AD), renowned scholar of mathematics and philosophy in Alexandria.
Middle Ages and the early modern period
In the period between 500 AD and 1700 AD, often referred to as the Middle Ages, women’s voices in history were largely unheard. This wasn’t because women had nothing to say. but rather a reflection of the societal structures and cultural norms of the time. Women were often kept out of education and important discussions. Their roles were mostly at home, and their thoughts and ideas weren’t written down or remembered.
18th Century
After 1700 AD, things started to change. The Enlightenment era brought new thinking. Women began to fight for their rights. They wanted to learn and speak out. Slowly, women like Mary Wollstonecraft started to appear. They wrote and talked about important things. This was the start of women getting back their voice in history.
- “I do not wish women to have power over men; but over themselves.” – Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 – 1797), advocate for women’s rights and author of “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman.”
19th Century
- “Every great dream begins with a dreamer.” – Harriet Tubman (1822 – 1913), American abolitionist and political activist.
- “As a woman, I have no country. As a woman, my country is the whole world.” – Virginia Woolf (1882 – 1941), central figure in the Bloomsbury Group and renowned modernist author.
20th to 21st Century (1900-Present)
After 1900, women started to have more rights. They could go to school, work, and speak their minds. History started to record their contributions, ideas and thoughts.
- “Be less curious about people and more curious about ideas.” – Marie Curie (1867 – 1934), first woman to win a Nobel Prize and only person to win in two different scientific fields.
- “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 – 1962), longest-serving First Lady of the United States and advocate for civil rights.
- “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller (1880 – 1968), first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.
- “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart (1897 – 1937), pioneering aviator and author.
- “If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.” – Margaret Thatcher (1925 – 2013), first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
- “I am not afraid… I was born to do this.” – Joan of Arc (1412 – 1431), national heroine of France and leader during the Hundred Years’ War.
- “The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” – Ayn Rand (1905 – 1982), Russian-American writer and philosopher.
- “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” – Simone de Beauvoir (1908 – 1986), French writer, intellectual, existentialist philosopher, political activist, feminist, and social theorist.
- “Knowing what must be done does away with fear.” – Rosa Parks (1913 – 2005), civil rights activist and the “mother of the freedom movement.”
- “Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa (1910 – 1997), Nobel Peace Prize laureate and founder of the Missionaries of Charity.
- “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 – 1962), human rights champion and former First Lady of the United States.
- “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker (Born 1944), American novelist, short story writer, poet, and social activist.
- “Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.” – Oprah Winfrey (Born 1954), influential media mogul and philanthropist.
- “Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.” – J.K. Rowling (Born 1965), author of the Harry Potter series.
- “Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are.” – Angela Merkel (Born 1954), former Chancellor of Germany.
- “Don’t feel stupid if you don’t like what everyone else pretends to love.” – Emma Watson (Born 1990), British actress and UN Women Goodwill ambassador.
- “We should all be feminists.” – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Born 1977), Nigerian writer and advocate for feminism and equality.
- “Every woman’s success should be an inspiration to another.” – Serena Williams (Born 1981), one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
- “Power is not given to you. You have to take it.” – Beyoncé (Born 1981), international pop star and advocate for women’s rights and racial equality.
- “Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.” – Nora Ephron (1941 – 2012), American journalist, writer, and filmmaker.
- “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement.” – Helen Keller (1880 – 1968), deaf-blind author and political activist.
- “If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.” – Dolly Parton (Born 1946), country music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, actress, author, businesswoman, and humanitarian.
- “To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” – Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 – 1962), an influential advocate for human rights and the role of women in the workforce.
- “If I stop to kick every barking dog I am not going to get where I’m going.” – Jackie Joyner-Kersee (Born 1962), retired track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the women’s heptathlon and women’s long jump.
- “I raise up my voice—not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard.” – Malala Yousafzai (Born 1997), advocate for female education and the youngest Nobel Prize laureate.
