KEY FACTS
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The swastika was long used as a symbol of well-being in ancient societies, including those in India, China, Africa, native America, and Europe.
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Adolf Hitler designed the Nazi flag in 1920. He combined the swastika with the three colors of the German Imperial flag (red, black, and white).
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Nazi symbols, including the swastika flag, are banned in a number of countries today, including Germany.
The Origins of the Swastika
The word swastika comes from the Sanskrit svastika, which means “good fortune” or “well-being." The motif (a hooked cross) appears to have first been used in Eurasia, as early as 7000 years ago, perhaps representing the movement of the sun through the sky. To this day, it is a sacred symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Odinism. It is a common sight on temples or houses in India or Indonesia. Swastikas also have an ancient history in Europe, appearing on artifacts from pre-Christian European cultures.
Its “Discovery” and Meanings in Modern Europe
The symbol experienced a resurgence in the nineteenth century, as a result of growing European interest in the ancient civilizations of the Near East and India. During his extensive excavations, the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann discovered the hooked cross on the site of ancient Troy. He connected it with similar shapes found on pottery in Germany and speculated that it was a “significant religious symbol of our remote ancestors.” Other European scholars and thinkers linked the symbol to a shared Aryan culture that spanned Europe and Asia.
In the beginning of the twentieth century the swastika was widely used in Europe. It had numerous meanings, the most common being a symbol of good luck and auspiciousness.
The Nazi Appropriation of the Swastika
Nazi propaganda postcard showing a crowd of saluting Germans superimposed on an enlarged image of Adolf Hitler with a member of the SA (Storm Trooper) who holds a swastika flag. Munich, Germany, ca. 1932.
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US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of James Sanders
However, the work of European linguists and other scholars was taken up by racist groups, for whom the swastika was a symbol of “Aryan identity” and German nationalist pride. This conjecture of Aryan cultural descent of the German people is likely one of the main reasons why the Nazi Party formally adopted the swastika or Hakenkreuz (Ger., hooked cross) as its symbol in 1920.
The Nazi Party was not the only party to use the swastika in Germany. After World War I, a number of far-right nationalist movements adopted the swastika. As a symbol, it became associated with the idea of a racially “pure” state. By the time the Nazis gained control of Germany, the connotations of the swastika had forever changed.
While Hitler’s Swastika stood for White Supremacy and the Nazi party, the Sanskrit Swastika, which has been used in the Indian Subcontinent, China, and many other Asian countries is a symbol of good luck and well being. It has been deep-rooted in these cultures, since ancient times. ‘Su’ means good or wellness and ‘Asti’ means being, making ‘Swasti’ a word for well being. It was never ever used to hurt the sentiments of anyone.
Nazi propaganda postcard featuring Adolf Hitler, a swastika flag, and a member of the SA
Nazi propaganda postcard showing a crowd of saluting Germans superimposed on an enlarged image of Adolf Hitler with a member of the SA (Storm Trooper) who holds a swastika flag. Munich, Germany, ca. 1932.
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US Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of James Sanders
The Nazi Party was not the only party to use the swastika in Germany. After World War I, a number of far-right nationalist movements adopted the swastika. As a symbol, it became associated with the idea of a racially “pure” state. By the time the Nazis gained control of Germany, the connotations of the swastika had forever changed.
In Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler wrote:
“I myself, meanwhile, after innumerable attempts, had laid down a final form; a flag with a red background, a white disk, and a black swastika in the middle. After long trials I also found a definite proportion between the size of the flag and the size of the white disk, as well as the shape and thickness of the swastika.”
Nazi banner
Nazi banner with a swastika. The swastika became the most recognizable icon of Nazi propaganda, appearing on the Nazi flag, election posters, arm bands, medallions, and badges for military and other organizations.
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US Holocaust Memorial Museum, gift of Peter Storm
The color scheme for the Nazi flag intentionally drew on the colors of the flag of Imperial Germany (1871–1918), which still resonated with many Germans who rejected democracy and the Weimar Republic. The color combination with the swastika made for a powerful logo, a trademark that became indelibly linked with the Nazi Party. Most political parties in democratic Germany did not have a political logo; the Communist Party and the Nazi Party were exceptions.
The swastika became the most recognizable icon of Nazi propaganda, appearing on the flag referred to by Hitler in Mein Kampf, as well as on election posters, arm bands, medallions, and badges for military and other organizations. A potent symbol intended to elicit pride among Aryans, the swastika also struck terror into Jews and others deemed enemies of Nazi Germany.
The Swastika in the Third Reich
Shortly after taking power in 1933, Hitler’s regime replaced the constitutionally-mandated black-red-gold flag of the Weimar Republic that had been linked with Germany’s democratic traditions. On March 12, 1933, President Paul von Hindenburg and Adolf Hitler issued a decree stating that henceforth the old German Imperial flag (black-white-red) was to be flown together with the swastika flag. “These flags,” the edict spelled out,