The Germanic Tribes, the Gods and the German Far Right Today (Routledge Studies in Fascism and the Far Right)

__The Germanic Tribes, the Gods and the German Far Right Today__ deals with the question of how right-wing extremists in German-speaking countries adapt and adopt elements from the history, culture, and mythology of the Germanic tribes. It provides the first in-depth study of the adoption of these historical motifs by right-wing extremists. Using linguistic and historical perspectives, and drawing on both publicly accessible material and sources gathered by the intelligence services, the book delineates the influence and impact of Germanic tribal history and culture within extremist subcultures. The author demonstrates that references to the Germanic peoples, their history, culture, and mythology, are even more widespread among contemporary right-wing extremists than they were in the interwar National Socialist era. This book will be of interest to researchers of right-wing extremism, German politics, and social movements. The Germanic Tribes, the Gods and the German Far Right Today deals with the question of how right-wing extremists in German-speaking countries adapt and adopt elements from the history, culture, and mythology of the Germanic tribes. It provides the first in-depth study of the adoption of these historical motifs by right-wing extremists. Using linguistic and historical perspectives, and drawing on both publicly accessible material and sources gathered by the intelligence services, the book delineates the influence and impact of Germanic tribal history and culture within extremist subcultures. The author demonstrates that references to the Germanic peoples, their history, culture, and mythology, are even more widespread among contemporary right-wing extremists than they were in the interwar National Socialist era. This book will be of interest to researchers of right-wing extremism, German politics, and social movements. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series 3 Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 8 List of figures 10 Introduction 14 1 Germanic culture and Germanic myth on the far right: Research to date and unanswered questions 16 1.1 General introduction 16 1.2 A critical review of the research to date 18 1.3 Organisational forms of the far right 20 2 The reception of Germanic culture on the far right 25 2.1 A short history of the reception of Germanic culture in the German-speaking world 25 2.2 Far-right uses of Germanic history and culture 27 2.3 Evaluation and the consequences of the far-right use of Germanic history and culture 45 2.4 A note on the use of archaic language 49 3 The far-right use of Norse-Germanic mythology 52 3.1 Background 52 3.2 Findings 57 3.2.1 References to the world of the Germanic gods 57 3.2.2 References to mythological material in the wider sense 82 3.3 The adoption of myths as a source of transcendence 84 3.4 Myth as response to a lack of meaning 87 4 Aims, causes and consequences of the far-right appropriation of Germanic history and culture 90 4.1 Functions of the far-right appropriation 90 4.2 Summary and societal consequences 104 5 Far-right symbols referring to Germanic cultural history 109 5.1 Introduction 109 5.2 Symbols related to mythology 109 5.3 Runes 122 5.4 The Black Sun 139 5.5 Combinations of symbols 142 5.6 The symbolism of numbers 145 5.7 Summary 147 6 Violent messages on far-right stickers and T-shirts with references to the Germanic tribes 149 6.1 Background 149 6.2 Methodology and material evidence 149 6.3 Colours and text 153 6.4 Norse-Germanic mythology as a religion of violence 155 6.5 The Germanic tribes as warriors 168 6.6 Summary/conclusion 173 Afterword 175 Bibliography 176 Index 190 Germanic,Tribes;,Gods;,Far,Right;,Germanic,Culture;,Germanic,Myth;,Germanic,History;,Norse-Germanic,Mythology;,Runes;,Black,Sun;,Odin;,Thor;,Volk;,Violence;,Werwolf;,Valkyrie;,Wotan;,Donar;,Walhalla Germanic Tribes,Gods,Far Right,Germanic Culture,Germanic Myth,Germanic History,Norse-Germanic Mythology,Runes,Black Sun,Odin,Thor,Volk,Violence,Werwolf,Valkyrie,Wotan,Donar,Walhalla