Holocaust Unit 2 Vocab

Allies

The Allies were composed of France, Britain, and Russia,

and later Japan and Italy. The Allies fought the Central Powers in

World War I. The United States joined the Allies in 1917.

Anschluss

The German annexation of Austria in March 1938.

Aryan

was used originally to identify peoples speaking the languages of Europe and India. The Nazis changed it to mean “superior race,” described as white, tall, athletic, with blond hair and blue eyes.

Central Powers

During WWI, these were the powers opposing the Allies. The _____ Power countries included Germany, Austro-Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey.

Collaborator

In the context of war, one who cooperates with the enemy who is occupying his/her country and/or persecuting his/her people.

Dehumanization

Intended to change the manner in which a

person or group of people are perceived. Dehumanization reduces

the target group to objects therefore no longer human and worthy

of human 2 rights or dignity. This was done by identifying people

by numbers in place of their names, or as animals like “pigs,” or

insects like “cockroaches.”

Evian Conference

A meeting of delegates from some 32 countries in the summer of 1938 that met at the French summer resort to discuss the refugee problem caused by Nazi persecution of Jews. Few countries were willing to open their doors, giving a clear message to Adolf Hitler as to the true feelings of many foreign countries toward the Jews.

Fascism

A political movement that exalts the collective nation, and often race, above the individual and that advocates: a centralized totalitarian state headed by a charismatic leader; expansion of the nation, preferably by military force; forcible suppression and sometimes physical annihilation of opponents both real and perceived.

Fourteen Points

The Fourteen Points were introduced by Wilson in 1918. It was Wilson's peace plan. Each of the points were designed to prevent future wars. He compromised each point at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. The only point which remained was the 14th (League of Nations). Each one was appealing to a specific group in the war and each one held a specific purpose.

Fuehrer

German word for “leader.” In Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler was the supreme leader and was called …

Gestapo

The Nazi Secret State Police, Geheime Staatspolizei, who had absolute power and could arrest without a warrant.

Imperialism

a policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force.

Kindertransport

A program which allowed, after much negotiations, and with heavy fees attached, for Jewish children to be sent from Germany, Austria and parts of Czechoslovakia to Great Britain. Many of these children were housed with foster families, not all of the experiences being positive ones. Others were housed in castles in the countryside. Many of these children, especially the girls, do not remember the experience with great affection since they were anxious

Kristallnacht

Also referred to as the “Night of Broken Glass,”

this pogrom occurred on Nov. 9-10, 1938 in Germany and Austria

against hundreds of synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses,

homes and Jews themselves. This so-called “spontaneous

demonstration” was in reaction to the assassination of a German

official by a Jewish student whose parents had been deported to

the Polish border.

League of Nations

In 1919, after the war, Wilson proposed

the League in the 14th point of his peace plan. He envisioned it as

an Assembly with seats for all nations and a special council for the

great powers. The US voted not to join the League because in

doing so, it would have taken away our self-determination, and

Congress could not decide whether to go to war or not.

Lebensraum

Meaning “living space,” this was the excuse used

by Hitler for the taking over of territories for the “superior” Aryan

peoples.

Mein Kampf

German for “my conquest.” The title of Adolf Hitler’s book, written in prison and published in 1925, that not only illustrated his bottomless antisemitism, but also served as blueprint for the Holocaust. Ownership of this book was mandatory in the Third Reich and the sale of the book made Hitler a millionaire.

Militarism

Militarism denoted a rise in military expenditure, an increase in military and naval forces, more influence of the military men upon the policies of the civilian government, and a preference for force as a solution to problems. Militarism was one of the main causes of the First World War.

Mischlinge

Derogatory Nazi term meaning "mongrel" that

denoted people having both Christian and Jewish ancestors. See

Nuremberg Laws.

Nationalism

An extreme form of patriotism. identification with

one's own nation and support for its interests, especially to the

exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations.

Nazi

The abbreviation for Hitler’s political party, the National

Socialist German Workers’ Party. The Nazi Party was a

right-wing, nationalistic, and antisemitic political party formed in

1919 and headed by Adolf Hitler from 1921 to 1945.

Nuremberg Laws

Racial laws put into effect by the German parliament in Nuremberg on September 15, 1935. These laws became the basis for racist anti-Jewish policies and the legal exclusion of Jews from German life. One of the first Nuremberg Laws declared that only Aryans could be citizens of Germany. Jewish families who had lived in Germany for 400 or more years suddenly had no legal rights or protection. Similar anti-Jewish laws were imposed upon every nation occupied by the German army.

Pogrom

Russian word for “devastation.” Organized violence,

riots and lynchings aimed against Jews, often initiated and

supported by religious and political authorities.

Propaganda – False or partly-false information used by a

government or political party to sway the opinions of the

population. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s minister of propaganda and

a master of the manipulation of truth, used books, film,

newspapers, and radio to further notions of racial superiority and

the persecution of Jews.

Refugee

One who flees his/her country in search of safety in

times of war, political oppression, or religious persecution.

SA

Abbreviation for Sturmabteilung, the German for “storm

troopers,” a special armed and uniformed branch of the Nazi

party. They were also called “Brownshirts” because of the color of

their uniforms.

Scapegoat

A person or group of people unfairly blamed for

natural disasters or wrong actions done by others. The Jews were

the scapegoats of the Nazis, and unfairly blamed for all of the

economic, political, and cultural problems in Germany in the

1920s and 1930s.

SS

Abbreviation for the German Schutzstaffel, Hitler’s elite

guard, headed by Heinreich Himmler. There were many divisions

of the SS and one of the most powerful was the Gestapo. The

Einsatzgruppen were also members of the SS, as well as the

Death’s Head Regiment whose members became commandants of

concentration and death camps. Known as the “Blackshirts,” they

wore black uniforms and became known throughout Europe as

Hitler’s butchers, the most dreaded group of all who were given

daggers and sworn to kill all who were enemies of Hitler, even

their own brothers, upon graduation from special SS schools.

Star of David

A six-pointed star, symbol of the Jewish

religion. Jews were required to wear a yellow star on their

clothing for identification and to make them easy targets.

Swastika

An ancient Eastern symbol adopted by the Nazis as

their emblem. Third Reich – “Reich” is German for “empire.” The

Third Reich is the official name of the Nazi regime. Historically,

the First Reich was the medieval Holy Roman Empire, which

lasted until 1806. The Second Reich included the German Empire,

from 1871 to 1918. Hitler expected the Third Reich to last one

thousand years; however, it lasted only twelve from 1933 to 1945.

Totalitarian

A government or doctrine in which one political

party or political group maintains complete control of a

population even to the intimate, private details of an individual’s

life such as one’s friendships.

Untermenschen

German word meaning "sub-humans," used by Nazis to refer to the groups they deemed "undesirable."

Visa 

Legal permission distributed by a government enabling an

individual to enter that country. Persecuted Jews had to possess

not only a German passport, but also a Visa from another country

permitting them entry in order to leave Germany.

Volkisch

This was a movement in Germany that believed in the

superiority of the Germanic race. The group feared and hated

foreigners, particularly Jews.

Wagner-Rogers Bill

A bill to admit some 20,000 Jewish

children to the United States. The bill was killed by the efforts of

some of the antisemitic factions in the U.S. State Department, as

well as the fear by some Jewish leaders that pressing this bill

would create antisemitic backlash in the United States.

Weimar Republic-

The new democratically elected government in Germany following the end of World War I.