Wolfgang Abel
Encyclopedia
Wolfgang Abel was an Austria
n anthropologist
and one of Nazi Germany
's racial biologists. He was the son of the Austria
n paleontologist
Othenio Abel.
From 1931 Wolfgang Abel was engaged at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity, and Eugenics
. In 1933 he became a member of the NSDAP. He was involved in compulsory sterilization
of children, who resulted from relationships between German women and dark-skinned French
soldiers. In 1934 he wrote an article, which was published in the German
newspaper "Neues Volk
", with the title "Bastarde am Rhein" (Rhineland Bastard
s). In 1935 he joined the SS. In 1942 Abel was successor to Eugen Fischer
for the professorship of racial biology at the University of Berlin.
Wolfgang Abel delivered in 1938 a speech at the "Congres International des Sciences Anthropologiques et Ethnologiques, Deuxieme Session, Copenhague 1938. The topic was: Die Rasse der rumänischen Zigeuner.
After World War II
he lived in Austria until his death in 1997.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n anthropologist
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
and one of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
's racial biologists. He was the son of the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n paleontologist
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
Othenio Abel.
From 1931 Wolfgang Abel was engaged at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity, and Eugenics
Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity, and Eugenics
The Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity, and Eugenics was founded in 1927. The Rockefeller Foundation supported both the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Psychiatry and the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity and Eugenics...
. In 1933 he became a member of the NSDAP. He was involved in compulsory sterilization
Compulsory sterilization
Compulsory sterilization also known as forced sterilization programs are government policies which attempt to force people to undergo surgical sterilization...
of children, who resulted from relationships between German women and dark-skinned French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
soldiers. In 1934 he wrote an article, which was published in the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
newspaper "Neues Volk
Neues Volk
Neues Volk was the monthly publication of the Office of Racial Policy in Nazi Germany. Founded by Walter Gross in 1933, it was a mass-market, illustrated magazine. It aimed at a wide audience, achieving a circulation of 300,000...
", with the title "Bastarde am Rhein" (Rhineland Bastard
Rhineland Bastard
Rhineland Bastard was a derogatory term used in Nazi Germany to describe Afro-German children of mixed German and African parentage who were fathered by Africans serving as French colonial troops occupying the Rhineland after World War I...
s). In 1935 he joined the SS. In 1942 Abel was successor to Eugen Fischer
Eugen Fischer
Eugen Fischer was a German professor of medicine, anthropology and eugenics. He was director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology, Human Heredity, and Eugenics between 1927 and 1942...
for the professorship of racial biology at the University of Berlin.
Wolfgang Abel delivered in 1938 a speech at the "Congres International des Sciences Anthropologiques et Ethnologiques, Deuxieme Session, Copenhague 1938. The topic was: Die Rasse der rumänischen Zigeuner.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he lived in Austria until his death in 1997.
Literature
- Lusane, Clarence (2002). Hitler's Black Victims: The Historical Experience of Afro-Germans, European Blacks, Africans and African Americans in the Nazi Era (Cross Currents in African American History) Routledge. ISBN 978-0415932950
- Proctor, Robert (2006). Racial Hygiene: Medicine Under the Nazis Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0674745780