Untermench -

The term Untermensch (German for “under-man” or “subhuman”) represents one of the most potent and destructive political concepts of the 20th century. Coined as a biological and racial antithesis to the Übermensch (Overman) of Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy, the Nazi iteration of Untermensch served as a pseudo-scientific justification for genocide, enslavement, and territorial expansion. This paper traces the etymological and ideological evolution of the term, its central role in Nazi propaganda (particularly toward Slavic peoples and Jews), its codification in SS legal doctrine, and its post-1945 afterlife in far-right rhetoric. By analyzing primary sources including Heinrich Himmler’s speeches, the SS-Leitheft (SS training pamphlets), and wartime propaganda films, this paper argues that Untermensch was not merely an insult but a legal and metaphysical category designed to exclude entire populations from the moral community of Menschen (humans).

The Nazis identified several groups as Untermensch, including: untermench

The term Untermensch directly enabled the Holocaust and the Porajmos (Romani genocide). It erased the last moral barrier: if your enemy is not human, killing is not murder—it is pest control. Einsatzgruppen (mobile killing units) officers testified at Nuremberg that they had internalized this classification. One SS man, Otto Ohlendorf, stated: “We were taught that the Jews and Slavs were Untermenschen … I felt nothing. You do not feel pity for a rat.” but they drastically repurposed it.

The term "Untermensch" did not originate with the Nazis, but they drastically repurposed it. Friedrich Nietzsche had popularized the concept of the Übermensch —an individual who rises above conventional morality to create their own values. the SS-Leitheft (SS training pamphlets)