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40-682: The German noun Volk ( German pronunciation: [fɔlk] ) translates to people , both uncountable in the sense of people as in a crowd , and countable (plural Völker ) in the sense of a people as in an ethnic group or nation (compare the English term folk ). Within an English-language context, the German word is of interest primarily for its use in German philosophy , as in Volksseele ("national soul"), and in German nationalism – notably
80-430: A Rasse or "race", so these two terms did not always denote the same concept. Unlike the adjective völkisch , which became associated with German nationalism, the German noun Volk remains the unmarked term for "a people" or "nation" (while its older meanings of "a crowd of people" or "commoners" are less current). The Reichstag building retains its dedication, inscribed in 1916, reading dem deutschen Volke ("to
120-451: A national constitution for all German states but rivalry between Prussian and Austrian interests resulted in proponents of the parliament advocating a "Lesser German" solution (a monarchical German nation-state without Austria). The King of Prussia , Frederick William IV of Prussia , refused the offer and efforts to create a liberal German nation-state faltered and collapsed. A division developed among German nationalists, with one group led by
160-465: A revolt against modernity," Nicholls remarked. Throughout much of the 19th century, it was not universally agreed that there was such a thing as a single "German nation" ( Volk ). The "Germans" ( die Deutschen ) were rather seen as the equivalent of what would now be called the Germanic peoples , i.e. a large ethno-linguistic phylum comprising a number of peoples (such as the German "stems" or tribes of
200-807: A rough companion to Santa Claus ; the Lutzelfrau , a Yule witch who must be appeased with small presents; the Christkind ; the Osterhase (Easter Hare – the original Easter Bunny ); and Walpurgisnacht , a spring festival derived from pagan customs. Character folklore includes the stories of the Pied Piper of Hamelin , the Godfather Death , the trickster hero Till Eulenspiegel , the Town Musicians of Bremen and Faust . Documentation and preservation of folklore in
240-471: Is a name used by states , which particularly identify constitutionally with a form of socialism . In criminal law , in certain jurisdictions, criminal prosecutions are brought in the name of the People . Several U.S. states, including California , Illinois , and New York , use this style. Citations outside the jurisdictions in question usually substitute the name of the state for the words "the People" in
280-457: Is a representative example.) The word 民族 is often used by nationalists in China (" zhonghua minzu "), Korea (" minjok "), and Vietnam (" dân tộc "). The Volk -based nationalism is deeply related to the nation-buildings in modern Chinese, Japanese and Korean nationalism . The term "zhonghua minzu" ("中华民族") is a very important concept in explaining mainland Chinese nationalism . "Zhonghua minzu"
320-598: Is also appears in March of the Volunteers , the official national anthem of China. The term "minjok" ("民族") was reflected in South Korea 's Pledge of Allegiance before 2007. Notes Bibliography people A people is any plurality of persons considered as a whole. Used in politics and law, the term "a people" refers to the collective or community of an ethnic group or nation . The term "the people" refers to
360-738: The Franks (or Franconians ), Swabians , Bavarians , Thuringians , Saxons , etc.; also included into the term were the Scandinavians and the Anglo-Saxons , e.g. the Brothers' Grimm Deutsche Sagen of 1816–1818 which includes legends of Germanic antiquity as well as of German, Austrian and Swiss folklore. In the wake of the Revolutions of 1848 , the Frankfurt Parliament attempted to create
400-521: The Holy Roman Empire was named Imperium Romanum Sacrum Nationis Germanicæ , rendered in German as Heiliges Römisches Reich Deutscher Nation , suggesting that Latin germanicus "German, Germanic" was now expressed by the adjective deutsch . Volk is the cognate of English folk and also overlaps in the usage of the latter as in Volksmusik " folk music ", Volksglaube " folk belief " etc. In
440-616: The Prussian poet and philosopher Johann Gottfried von Herder . His belief in the role of folklore in ethnic nationalism – a folklore of Germany as a nation rather than of disunited German-speaking peoples – inspired the Brothers Grimm , Goethe and others. For instance, folklore elements, such as the Rhine Maidens and the Grimms' The Story of a Boy Who Went Forth to Learn Fear , formed part of
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#1732837803536480-691: The Roman Republic and the Roman Empire used the Latin term Senatus Populusque Romanus , (the Senate and People of Rome). This term was fixed abbreviated (SPQR) to Roman legionary standards, and even after the Roman Emperors achieved a state of total personal autocracy , they continued to wield their power in the name of the Senate and People of Rome. The term People's Republic , used since late modernity ,
520-534: The public or common mass of people of a polity . As such it is a concept of human rights law , international law as well as constitutional law , particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty . Chapter One, Article One of the Charter of the United Nations states that "peoples" have the right to self-determination . Though the mere status as peoples and the right to self-determination, as for example in
560-650: The unification of Germany was finally achieved, by the fusion of the North German Confederation (dominated by Prussia ) and the South or Central German states of Bavaria , Württemberg , Baden and Hesse . Adolf Hitler in Mein Kampf denounced usage of the word völkisch as he considered it too vague as to carry any recognizable meaning due to former over-use, although he used it often, especially in connection with ethnic Germans or Volksdeutsche . During
600-564: The " German Question ". Johann Gottlieb Fichte in his Addresses to the German Nation , published still during the Napoleonic Wars from 1808 onwards, asked, in the eighth address, "What is a Volk, in the higher sense of the term, and what is love of the fatherland?," He answered that it could only be that "particular spiritual nature of the human environment out of which he himself, with all of his thought and action... has arisen, namely
640-499: The 18th century, German Volk was mostly reserved for "crowd" or "mass of the population", while the concept of "a people" or "a nation" was now expressed by the Latinism Nation . Use of Nation in this sense was replaced by Volk after 1800, explicitly in the context of emergent German nationalism . Compounds in which Volk- translates to "populace" or "nation" include Volksentscheid ( plebiscite , literally "decision of/by
680-642: The GDR, since they regarded it as their right to decide whether the state should give shelter to refugees or not. This, however, is a constitutional right in Germany for "[p]ersons persecuted on political grounds" that can not be changed unless the constitution is changed with a two-thirds majority in both houses of the parliament; however, asylum seekers who enter "from a member state of the European Communities" already have no constitutional right to asylum. The term Volk
720-593: The German people"). While Volk suggests an ethnic group or nation, the term Bevölkerung is used in the sense of "populace, resident population". The term Volksdeutsche for "ethnic Germans" retains some usage but is increasingly replaced by Deutschstämmige ("[people] of German descent"). In composition, Volks- retains the meaning "of/for the common people", after the pattern of Volkswagen , sometimes used humorously in advertising (as in Volks-Zahnbürste "people's toothbrush") "Wir sind das Volk!" ("We are
760-631: The German-speaking parts of Switzer land , Luxembourg , Belgium , and Italy . It shares many characteristics with Nordic folklore and English folklore due to their origins in a common Germanic mythology . It reflects a similar mix of influences: a pre-Christian pantheon and other beings equivalent to those of Norse mythology ; magical characters (sometimes recognizably pre-Christian) associated with Christian festivals , and various regional 'character' stories. As in Scandinavia, when belief in
800-586: The Japanese who opposed the war were called "anti- kokumin " (非国民; hikokumin ). These words are not often used in Japan today, but they are used by some right-wing conservative and Japanese nationalist politicians. Taro Aso has called Japan a "one race" or "one minzoku ". 国民 and 民族 greatly influenced the nationalism (mainly romantic nationalism ) of East Asian countries. East Asia's "Nationalist Party" often describe it as 国民党 or 國民黨. (Republic of China's Kuomintang
840-647: The Prussians that supported a " Lesser Germany " that excluded Austria and another group that supported a " Greater Germany " that included Austria. Prussia achieved hegemony over Germany in the "wars of unification": the Second Schleswig War (1864), the Austro-Prussian War (1866), which effectively established the separation of Austria from Germany, and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/1, after which
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#1732837803536880-668: The case captions. Four states — Massachusetts , Virginia , Pennsylvania , and Kentucky — refer to themselves as the Commonwealth in case captions and legal process. Other states, such as Indiana , typically refer to themselves as the State in case captions and legal process. Outside the United States, criminal trials in Ireland and the Philippines are prosecuted in the name of
920-403: The case of Indigenous peoples ( peoples , as in all groups of indigenous people, not merely all indigenous persons as in indigenous people ) , does not automatically provide for independent sovereignty and therefore secession . Indeed, judge Ivor Jennings identified the inherent problems in the right of "peoples" to self-determination, as it requires pre-defining a said "people". Both
960-540: The compound word Herrenvolk , translated as " master race "; the " Volksjäger " jet fighter, translated as "people's fighter "; and the term Volksgemeinschaft , translated as "people's community". The term Volk, in the vision of Nazis, had a broad set of meanings, and referred sometimes to the entirety of German nation and other times to the Nordic race . In the writings of leading Nazi thinkers, such as Alfred Rosenberg and Hans Günther several Völker or "peoples" made up
1000-451: The course of the protests, indicating the ethnic meaning of Volk , where the division of Germany was regarded as unjust because of the common ethnic identity of all Germans. In 2015 the slogan "Wir sind das Volk" became popular again among members of PEGIDA (a nationalist movement), and various groups that claimed to stand in the tradition of Monday Demonstrations. Here, however, the ethnic connotation of "Volk" quickly became obvious. While
1040-440: The derived adjective völkisch ("national, ethnic"). The term Volk in the medieval period ( Middle High German volc ) had the primary meaning of "large crowd, army", while the more general sense of "population" or "people" was expressed by diet (adjective dietsch, deutsch "popular, of the people"). It was only in the early modern period that deutsch acquired the meaning of an ethnic self-designation. Beginning in 1512,
1080-563: The entire body of the citizens of a jurisdiction invested with political power or gathered for political purposes. German folklore German folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in Germany over a number of centuries. Seeing as Germany was divided into numerous polities for most of its history, this term might both refer to the folklore of Germany proper and of all German-speaking countries , this wider definition including folklore of Austria and Liechtenstein as well as
1120-401: The late 18th and 19th centuries, Volksgeist is used in the sense of "national spirit", not necessarily in reference to the German nation, but still strongly correlated with the development of a German national identity in the wake of the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire . The völkisch movement originates in this time, proposing the formation of a German nation state as a solution to
1160-516: The media as "the concerned citizens", started to use the slogan. They wanted to indicate that, according to their beliefs, the Volk (meaning only ethnic Germans ) should have more rights than immigrants and especially refugees. The similarity to the National Socialist Volk conception was pointed out by various media. The protesters also made references to the protests against the dictatorship of
1200-784: The old gods disappeared, remnants of the mythos persisted: There are: and many more generic entities such as the elf , dwarf , Kobold (with variants such as Bieresel , Gütel , Heinzelmännchen , Jack o' the bowl , and Niß Puk ), Klabautermann , Schrat , Wild man , Drak , Aufhocker , Ork , poltergeist , bogeyman , Will-o'-the-wisp , various Feldgeister , and Erlking . Famous individual Kobolds are King Goldemar , Hinzelmann , Hödekin , and Petermännchen . There further are mythical animals such as Bahkauv , Beerwolf , Elwetritsch , Erdhenne , lindworm , Nachtkrapp , Rasselbock , Tatzelwurm , and Wolpertinger , or mythical plants such as Alraune and Irrwurz . Popular folklore includes Krampus , Belsnickel , and Knecht Ruprecht ,
1240-401: The people from which he is descended and among which he has been formed and grown into that which he is". The movement combined sentimental patriotic interest in German folklore , local history and a "back-to-the-land" anti-urban populism with many parallels with expressions of Romantic nationalism in other parts of Europe, such as the writings of William Morris . "In part this ideology was
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1280-567: The people of their respective states. The political theory underlying this format is that criminal prosecutions are brought in the name of the sovereign ; thus, in these U.S. states , the "people" are judged to be the sovereign, even as in the United Kingdom and other dependencies of the British Crown , criminal prosecutions are typically brought in the name of the Crown . "The people" identifies
1320-651: The people!") was a chant used by the Monday demonstrators during the peaceful demonstrations of 1989/1990 to end the GDR and bring down the Berlin Wall . The slogan meant that the "simple people" would no longer endure the dictatorship, and wanted to reform the political system of the GDR. It did not necessarily express support for the idea of a reunification. However, the slogan was also altered to "Wir sind ein Volk!" ("We are one people") during
1360-530: The people") Völkerbund ( League of Nations ). The somewhat obsolete meaning of the common people , hoi polloi , working class is visible in the brand name Volkswagen "people's car", historically a name chosen by the German Labour Front in 1937 for a car designed to be affordable to the "common man". In contrast to German Volk being elevated to the sense of "nation" in the early 19th century, English folk came to be seen as inelegant at around
1400-546: The same time, being mostly replaced by the latinate people . It re-entered formal or academic English only through the invention of the word folklore , coined in 1846 by William J. Thoms as an Anglo-Saxonism. This word revived folk in a modern sense of "of the common people, whose culture is handed down orally", and opened up a flood of compound formations, e.g. folk art (1921), folk-hero (1899), folk-medicine (1898), folk-tale (1891), folk-song (1847), folk-music (1889), folk-dance (1912). In German philosophy of
1440-508: The slogan "Wir sind ein Volk" was no longer in use since the reunification, the slogan "Wir sind das Volk" was given a new meaning. Now the word "Wir" was used by right wing protesters to refer to themselves, in order to distinguish from migrants and so-called " Gutmenschen ", Germans that supported refugees. After Chancellor Angela Merkel decided to give shelter to a growing number of refugees, especially from Syria, in 2015, right wing groups as well as more modest movements, that were referred to by
1480-612: The source material for Richard Wagner 's opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen . Some of the works of Washington Irving – notably " Rip van Winkle " and " The Legend of Sleepy Hollow " – are based on German folktales. Within Germany, the nationalistic aspect was further emphasized during the National Socialist era. James R. Dow has written that under National Socialism, "folklore became a propaganda instrument of anti-democratic, anti-socialist, and extremely inhumane terrorist policies". Folklore studies, Volkskunde , were co-opted as
1520-411: The states that formally united as Germany in 1871 was initially fostered in the 18th and 19th centuries. As early as 1851, author Bernhard Baader published a collection of folklore research obtained by oral history, called Volkssagen aus dem Lande Baden und den angrenzenden Gegenden . The Saxon author Johann Karl August Musäus (1735–1787) was another early collector. Study was further promoted by
1560-549: The years of the Third Reich , the term Volk became heavily used in nationalistic political slogans, particularly in slogans such as Volk ohne Raum – "(a) people or race without space" or Völkischer Beobachter ("popular or racial observer"), an NSDAP party newspaper. Also the political slogan Ein Volk, ein Reich , ein Führer ("One nation, one empire, one leader");
1600-555: Was translated into kokumin ( Kanji : 国民, lit: nation; people) and minzoku (Kanji: 民族, lit: people; ethnic group) by Japan in the Meiji Era . ( Kokumin is used in a non-racial context, unlike minzoku .) Throughout the period of the Empire of Japan , these two words were used frequently, especially minzoku to indicate the superiority of the " Yamato race ". During the Shōwa "statist" period ,
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