Odal (SS-rune)
Odal or Othala, sometimes called Winged Odal or Winged Othala, is a Nazi symbol in the shape of an SS-rune, used by the Nazi German Schutzstaffel (SS), during the 1930s and -40s, to symbolize several values of central importance to Nazi ideology, such as kinship, family and blood ties, etc. It's based on the historical rune of the same name, Othala (ᛟ), a writing character of the late Iron Age Germanic peoples (Omega Ω based), but often modified with serifs, or "wings" (also called "feet, hooks, heels" etc).
During World War II, it was used by, among others, 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen och Volunteer Legion Netherlands, as well as the SS Race and Settlement Main Office, which was responsible for maintaining the racial purity of the SS.
Nowadays it sees continued use with Neo-Nazis and similar far-right collectives.
Usage
[edit]Period use
[edit]The Nazi-use of runic symbology was largely derrived from the Armanen runes, a collection of occult pseudo-runes, borrowed from the Younger Futhark, by Austrian mysticist and Germanic revivalist Guido von List, in the 1920s. Due to Younger Futhark being Norse (Nordic) in root, nationalistic German occultists later turned to the collective Germanic Elder Futhark to derrive from, of which Othala (ᛟ) is part of.
Such was later adopted by the Nazi German Schutzstaffel (SS), along with other similar symbols, for esoteric symbology of Aryan superiority. Odal then became the badge of the SS Race and Settlement Main Office, which was responsible for maintaining the racial purity of the SS.[1] It was also the emblem of ethnic Germans (Volksdeutsche) of the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen operating during World War II in the Nazi Germany-sponsored Independent State of Croatia.[citation needed] The Volunteer Legion Netherlands used a variant with arrows instead of wings.
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Volunteer Legion Netherlands' emblem -
Flag of the Croatian Volksdeutsche
Modern use
[edit]
Neo-Nazis and similar far-right collectives have continued the use of the symbol into modern times, sometimes with wings and sometimes without. Its symbology varries.
Users include: the Neo-Nazi Wiking-Jugend in Germany, and in South Africa by the Anglo-Afrikaner Bond, the Boeremag, the Blanke Bevrydingsbeweging,[2] the Italian neo-fascist group National Vanguard,[3] the Afrikaner Student Federation and the far-right wing White Liberation Movement before it was disbanded.[4][5][better source needed]
In November 2016, the leadership of the National Socialist Movement announced their intention to replace the Nazi-pattern swastika with the othala rune on their uniforms and party regalia in an attempt to enter mainstream politics.[6][7] The rune was further used, along with other traditional symbols from European cultures such as a Tiwaz rune and a Celtic cross, and slogans associated with Nazism and far-right extremism by the Christchurch mosque shooter Brenton Harrison Tarrant.[8] Heathen Front was a Neo-Nazi group, active during the 1990s to 2005 that espoused a racist form of Heathenry and described its ideas as odalism in reference to the alternative name for othala.[9][10]
Modern symbology
[edit]While some use the symbol under its original meaning of "kinship, family and blood ties", others have modified it to suite their agenda.
White supremacists who use the rune often claim it symbolises the heritage or land of "white" or "Aryan" people which should be free from foreigners. It has been noted however that this usage is a new invention by the groups and is not attested in any source from before the modern period, being labelled by runologist Michael Barnes as "spring[ing] entirely from the imagination".[11]
Alleged use
[edit]In some cases, individuals and organisations have been accused of using the rune as a far-right symbol, such as in April 2014 when the British Topman clothing company apologised after using it in one of their clothing lines.[12] Furthermore, at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held in Orlando, Florida, on February 25–28, 2021, the floor layout of the main stage resembled the winged form of the othala rune, leading to speculation on social media as to why that design was chosen. CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp said comparisons were "outrageous and slanderous".[13] Design firm Design Foundry later took responsibility for the design of the stage, saying that it "intended to provide the best use of space, given the constraints of the ballroom and social distancing requirements." Ian Walters, director of communications for the ACU and CPAC, said they would stop using Design Foundry.[14][15]
The neo-folk group Death in June used othala on the cover of their 7'' Come Before Christ And Murder Love alongside their "Totenkopf 6" logo.[16] The group does not openly support far-right ideologies however scholars have noted the group's fascination with Nazism and extensive usage of Nazi, and more widely fascist, imagery.[17]
References
[edit]- ^ Lumsden, Robin (1995). SS Regalia. Edison, NJ: Book Sales, Inc. p. 35. ISBN 9780785802280.
- ^ Schönteich, Martin and Boshoff, Henri Volk, faith and fatherland: the security threat posed by the white right Institute for Security Studies (South Africa)(2003) p48
- ^ Colborne, Michael (22 January 2020). "Ukraine's Far Right Is Boosting A Pro-Putin Fascist". bellingcat. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ "Neo-Nazi flag symbolism". flagspot.net. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
- ^ Visser, Myda Marista Die Ideologiese Grondslae En Ontwikkeling Van Die Blanke Fascistiese Bewegings In Suid-Afrika, 1945- 1995 (The ideological foundations and development of white fascist movements in South Africa, 1945-1999) M.A. thesis University of Pretoria (1999) p. 164
- ^ Smith, Rohan (15 November 2016). "Bizarre, bold reason America's white supremacists just banned swastika". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 2016-11-16. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
- ^ Schoep, Jeff (4 November 2016). "National Socialist Movement: Announcement". Press Release. National Socialist Movement (US). Retrieved 27 February 2021.
- ^ "White Supremacist Terrorist Attack at Mosques in New Zealand". March 15, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ^ eso, pp. 384, 621.
- ^ Gregorius, Frederick (2006). Old Norse religion in long-term perspectives: origins, changes, and interactions: an international conference in Lund, Sweden, June 3-7, 2004. Lund: Nordic Academic Press. p. 390. ISBN 9789189116818.
- ^ Barnes 2022, pp. 194–196.
- ^ Hayward, Stephen (2014-04-13). "Fascism disaster: Topman withdraws 'Nazi' clothing line after online shopper points out SS insignia". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
- ^ Walters, Joanna (1 March 2021). "CPAC: Hyatt Hotels says stage design resembling Nazi rune is 'abhorrent'". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
- ^ Kornbluh, Jacob (2021-03-03). "Design firm takes responsibility for CPAC stage controversy". The Forward. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
- ^ Ibrahim 2021.
- ^ Discogs.
- ^ Heilbronner 2015, pp. 270–286.
Sources
[edit]- Barnes, Michael P. (2022). Runes: a handbook (paperback ed.). Woodbridge Rochester, NY: the Boydell press. ISBN 9781783276974.
- Bogdan, Henrik; Hammer, Olav, eds. (2016). Western Esotericism in Scandinavia. BRILL. pp. 384, 621. ISBN 9789004325968.
- "Death In June - Come Before Christ And Murder Love". Discogs. 1985. Retrieved 2023-05-31.
- Heilbronner, Oded (2015). "The Wewelsburg Effect: Nazi Myth and Paganism in Postwar European Popular Music". Revisiting the "Nazi Occult": Histories, Realities, Legacies. German History in Context. Boydell & Brewer: 270–286. doi:10.1017/9781782046080.013. ISBN 9781782046080.
- Ibrahim, Nur Nasreen (2021-03-03). "Was the CPAC Stage Intentionally Shaped Like a Nazi Symbol?". snopes.com. Retrieved 2023-04-13. [Verdict: "Mixture". The resemblance was clear, the intention undetermined by documentation but denied.]