{{verify|date=April 2026}} {{Short description|Nazi symbol and SS rune}} {{for|the historical rune|*Ōþala}} thumb|upright|Winged Odal '''Odal''' or '''Othala'''{{snd}}specifically '''Winged Odal''' or '''Winged Othala'''{{snd}}is a Nazi symbol and SS rune, used by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (''SS'') paramilitary in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s. It symbolized several values of central importance to Nazi ideology, such as kinship, family, and blood ties. It's based on the historical rune of the same name, Othala (ᛟ), a writing character of the late Iron Age Germanic peoples (probably stemming from Omega (Ω)), but often modified with serifs, or "wings" (also called "feet", "hooks", "heels", etc.).
During World War II, it was used by – among others – volunteer formations such as the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division ''Prinz Eugen'', as well as the SS Race and Settlement Main Office, which was responsible for maintaining the racial purity of the SS.
In the 21st century, it sees continued use among Neo-Nazis and similar far-right groups.
== Origin == The Nazi-use of runic symbology was largely derived 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 derive from, of which Othala (ᛟ) is part of.
== Usage == {{further|Nazi symbolism|Runes#Modern use}}
=== Usage by Nazi Germany === {{Further|SS runes}} [[File:Jesionkowa Street in Prudnik, 2018.08.15 (02).jpg|thumb|upright|1937 pillar with Odal in Prudnik, Poland (pre-1945 Germany)]]
The Odal was adopted by the ''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.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lumsden |first=Robin |date=1995 |title=SS Regalia |location=Edison, NJ |publisher=Book Sales, Inc. |page=35 |isbn= 9780785802280}}</ref> It was also the emblem of ''Volksdeutsche'' (ethnic Germans) 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|date=January 2023}} The Volunteer Legion Netherlands used a variant with arrows instead of wings.
{{gallery |title=Examples of usage |File:Allgemeine SS black uniform. Closeup of Swastika armband, NSDAP pin, Odal rune Rauter sleeve diamond, Sam Browne belt, etc. Lofoten krigsminnemuseum 2019-05-08 DSC00374.jpg|''Allgemeine SS'' uniform with Odal diamond sleeve patch (bottom right) |File:7th SS Division Logo.svg|Insignia of the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division ''Prinz Eugen'' |File:23rd SS Division Logo "Nederland".svg|Emblem of the ''Waffen-SS''- Volunteer Legion Netherlands |File:Flag of Volksdeutsche in Croatia.svg|Flag of the Croatian ''{{lang|de|Volksdeutsche}}'' |File:Flag of the Rassemblement National Populaire.svg|Flag of the French National Popular Rally }}
=== Modern usage === {{Further|Strafgesetzbuch § 86a}}
[[File:Flag with Odal rune.svg|thumb|Odal SS-rune without "wings" on flag of the Neo-Nazi ''Wiking-Jugend'']]
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 varies.
Users include: the Neo-Nazi {{lang|de|Wiking-Jugend}} in Germany, and in South Africa by the Anglo-Afrikaner Bond, the {{lang|af|Boeremag}}, the {{lang|af|Blanke Bevrydingsbeweging}},<ref>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</ref> the Italian neo-fascist group National Vanguard,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Colborne |first1=Michael |title=Ukraine's Far Right Is Boosting A Pro-Putin Fascist |url=https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2020/01/22/ukraines-far-right-is-boosting-a-pro-putin-fascist/ |website=bellingcat |access-date=14 July 2021 |date=22 January 2020}}</ref> the Afrikaner Student Federation and the far-right White Liberation Movement before it was disbanded.<ref name="flagspot">{{cite web|url=https://flagspot.net/flags/qt-z_sym.html#odal|title=Neo-Nazi flag symbolism|publisher=flagspot.net|access-date=2015-09-02}}</ref><ref>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</ref>{{Better source needed|date=July 2020}}
[[File:Flag of National Socialist Movement (United States) (2016).svg|thumb|Flag of the National Socialist Movement (2016–2019)]]
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.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/americas-white-supremacists-ban-swastika-in-bold-attempt-to-go-mainstream/news-story/53f68100ba52a1e33b13cf25b794d028|title=Bizarre, bold reason America's white supremacists just banned swastika|newspaper=News.com.au |date=15 November 2016|access-date=2016-11-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161116144901/http://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/americas-white-supremacists-ban-swastika-in-bold-attempt-to-go-mainstream/news-story/53f68100ba52a1e33b13cf25b794d028|archive-date=2016-11-16|url-status=live|last1=Smith|first1=Rohan}}</ref><ref name="NSM4nov16">{{cite web | url=https://www.nsm88.org/nsmnews/NSMAnnouncement_Nov_2016.htm | title=National Socialist Movement: Announcement | publisher=National Socialist Movement (US) | work=Press Release | date=4 November 2016 | accessdate=27 February 2021 | author=Schoep, Jeff | archive-date=1 March 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301004645/https://www.nsm88.org/nsmnews/NSMAnnouncement_Nov_2016.htm | url-status=dead }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.adl.org/blog/white-supremacist-terrorist-attack-at-mosques-in-new-zealand|title=White Supremacist Terrorist Attack at Mosques in New Zealand|access-date=March 24, 2019|date=March 15, 2019}}</ref> 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.{{sfn|eso|pp=384,621}}<ref name="Gregorius">{{cite book |last1=Gregorius |first1=Frederick |title=Old Norse religion in long-term perspectives: origins, changes, and interactions: an international conference in Lund, Sweden, June 3-7, 2004 |date=2006 |publisher=Nordic Academic Press |location=Lund |isbn=9789189116818 |page=390}}</ref> In 2019, the group reverted back to using the swastika as their logo.
==== Modern symbology ==== While some use the symbol under its original meaning of "kinship, family and blood ties", others have modified it to suit 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".{{sfn|Barnes|2022|pp=194-196}}
== Alleged use == 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/fascism-disaster-topman-withdraws-nazi-3406462|title=Fascism disaster: Topman withdraws 'Nazi' clothing line after online shopper points out SS insignia|website=Daily Mirror|last=Hayward|first=Stephen|date=2014-04-13|access-date=2020-06-26}}</ref> 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".<ref name="Graun">{{cite news |last1=Walters |first1=Joanna |title=CPAC: Hyatt Hotels says stage design resembling Nazi rune is 'abhorrent' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/01/cpac-2021-stage-design-nazi-sign-odal-othala-rune-hyatt-hotels-hate-symbol-abhorrent |access-date=1 March 2021 |work=The Guardian |date=1 March 2021}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kornbluh|first1=Jacob|title=Design firm takes responsibility for CPAC stage controversy|date=2021-03-03|url=https://forward.com/fast-forward/465136/design-firm-takes-responsibility-for-cpac-stage-controversy/|newspaper=The Forward|access-date=2023-03-16}}</ref>{{sfn|Ibrahim|2021}}
The neo-folk group Death in June used othala on the cover of their 7<nowiki>''</nowiki> ''Come Before Christ And Murder Love'' alongside their "Totenkopf 6" logo.{{sfn|Discogs}} 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.{{sfn|Heilbronner|2015|pp=270-286}}
== References == {{reflist}}
== Sources == * {{cite book |last1=Barnes |first1=Michael P. |title=Runes: a handbook |date=2022 |publisher=the Boydell press |location=Woodbridge Rochester, NY |isbn=9781783276974 |edition=paperback}} * {{cite book |ref={{sfnref|eso}} |title=Western Esotericism in Scandinavia |date=2016 |pages=384, 621 |editor1-first=Henrik |editor1-last=Bogdan |editor2-first= Olav |editor2-last=Hammer |publisher=BRILL |isbn=9789004325968}} * {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Discogs}} |title=Death In June - Come Before Christ And Murder Love |url=https://www.discogs.com/release/141748-Death-In-June-Come-Before-Christ-And-Murder-Love |website=Discogs |language=en |date=1985|access-date=2023-05-31}} * {{cite journal |last1=Heilbronner |first1=Oded |title=The Wewelsburg Effect: Nazi Myth and Paganism in Postwar European Popular Music |journal=Revisiting the "Nazi Occult": Histories, Realities, Legacies |series=German History in Context |date=2015 |pages=270–286 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/revisiting-the-nazi-occult/wewelsburg-effect-nazi-myth-and-paganism-in-postwar-european-popular-music/710E161F1EA44EB2F8690A7FB165010B |publisher=Boydell & Brewer|doi=10.1017/9781782046080.013 |isbn=9781782046080 |url-access=subscription }} * {{cite web |first=Nur Nasreen |last=Ibrahim |date=2021-03-03 |title=Was the CPAC Stage Intentionally Shaped Like a Nazi Symbol? |website=snopes.com |access-date=2023-04-13 |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cpac-stage-nazi-symbol/ |trans-quote=Verdict: "Mixture". The resemblance was clear, the intention undetermined by documentation but denied.}}
Category:SS runes Category:Nazi symbolism