Herrenvolk (Noun)
Meaning
A race that considers itself superior to all others and fitted to rule the others.
Classification
Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects.
Examples
- The Nazi regime envisioned a herrenvolk of pure Aryan descent, destined to dominate the world through military conquest and racial purity.
- In South Africa, the Afrikaans-speaking whites saw themselves as a herrenvolk, entitled to govern and dominate the black majority.
- The term "herrenvolk" was used to describe the self-proclaimed racial superiority of the German nation during the Third Reich.
- Historians have noted that the ideology of the Confederate States of America was rooted in a herrenvolk mentality, with whites viewing themselves as natural rulers over enslaved blacks.
- The Afrikaner nationalist movement in 19th-century South Africa embodied a classic herrenvolk ideology, viewing themselves as a master race destined to dominate the native populations.