The Black Sun (German: Schwarze Sonne) is a type of sun wheel (German: Sonnenrad)^[1][2] symbol originating in Nazi Germany and later employed by neo-Nazis and other far-right individuals and groups. The symbol's design consists of twelve radial sig runes, similar to the symbols employed by the SS in their logo. It first appeared in Nazi Germany as a design element in a castle at Wewelsburg remodeled and expanded by the head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, which he intended to be a center for the SS.

It is unknown whether the design had a name or held any particular significance among the SS. Its association with the occult originates with a 1991 German novel, Die Schwarze Sonne von Tashi Lhunpo (The Black Sun of Tashi Lhunpo), by the pseudonymous author Russell McCloud. The book links the Wewelsburg mosaic with the neo-Nazi concept of the "Black Sun", invented by former SS officer Wilhelm Landig as a substitute for the Nazi swastika.^[3][4]

The Anti-Defamation League notes that though the symbol is popular with white supremacists, imagery resembling the black sun features in many cultures, and that such imagery should always be analyzed in the context in which it appears, as it may not necessarily be intended to serve as a symbol of white supremacy or racism.^[5]

Wewelsburg mosaic and the Nazi period

The symbol that later became known as the "black sun" originated in the early 20th century, with the first depiction being the Wewelsburg mosaic. In 1933, Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, acquired Wewelsburg, a castle near Paderborn in the German region of Westphalia. Himmler intended to make the building into a center for the SS, and between 1936 and 1942, Himmler ordered the building expanded and rebuilt for ceremonial purposes.^[6] Himmler's remodeling included the Wewelsburg mosaic that was composed of twelve dark-green radially overlaid sig runes, such as those employed in the logo of the SS, on the white marble floor of the structure's north tower known as the "General's Hall" (Obergruppenführersaal).^{[note 1]} The intended significance of the image remains unknown.

Some scholars have suggested that the artist may have found inspiration from motifs found on decorative Merovingian period discs (Zierscheiben) from Central Europe, which have been suggested to represent the sun, or its passing through the year.^{[3][7][note 2]}

Neo-Nazism and far right

In the late 20th century, the Black Sun symbol became widely used by neo-fascist, neo-Nazi,^[8] the far-right and white nationalists. The symbol often appears on extremist flags, t-shirts, posters, websites and in extremist publications associated with such groups. Modern far-right groups often refer to the symbol as the sun wheel or Sonnenrad.^[6][9][10]

The name "Black Sun" came into wider use after the publication of a 1991 occult thriller novel, Die Schwarze Sonne von Tashi Lhunpo (The Black Sun of Tashi Lhunpo), by the pseudonymous author Russell McCloud. The book links the Wewelsburg mosaic with the neo-Nazi concept of the "Black Sun", invented by former SS officer Wilhelm Landig as a substitute for the Nazi swastika and a symbol for a mystic energy source that was supposed to renew the Aryan race.^[3][4][11]

A number of far-right groups and individuals have utilised the symbol in their propaganda, including the perpetrator behind the Christchurch mosque shootings, Brenton Tarrant and Australian neo-Nazi group Antipodean Resistance, and the symbol was displayed by members of several extremist groups involved in the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.^[12]

Along with other symbols from the Nazi era such as the Wolfsangel, the Sig Armanen rune, and the Totenkopf, the black sun is employed by some neo-Nazi adherents of Satanism.^[13] Scholar Chris Mathews writes:

The Black Sun motif is even less ambiguous. Though based on medieval German symbols, the Wewelsburg mosaic is a unique design commissioned specifically for Himmler, and its primary contemporary association is Nazi occultism, for which Nazi Satanic groups and esoteric neo-Nazis adopt it.^[13]

In May 2022, a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York occurred. The shooter, a white supremacist, wore the Black Sun symbol on his body armor and placed it on the front of his digital manifesto. Pro-Kremlin Telegram channels and influencers subsequently spread misinformation linking the shooter with the Azov Regiment and the Ukrainian nation more broadly. However, the shooter makes no reference to the Azov Regiment in his manifesto, and Ukraine receives only a single mention in a section plagiarized from an earlier mass shooter's manifesto that predates the Russian invasion of Ukraine.^[14]

On 1 September 2022, Fernando André Sabag Montiel, who has a Black Sun tattoo on his arm, attempted to assassinate Argentinian vice president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.^[15]

In July 2023, a member of the Ron DeSantis U.S. presidential campaign produced and shared a video on Twitter containing the Black Sun.^[16][17] The video was quickly retracted after garnering media attention and backlash,^[18] and the aide was fired.^[19]

Azov Battalion

The Ukrainian military unit Azov Regiment, founded in 2014, used the symbol as part of its logo.^[20][22] Political scientist Ivan Gomza wrote in Krytyka that the illiberal connotations of the symbol in that logo are lost on most people in Ukraine, and the logo rather has an association with "a successful fighting unit that protects Ukraine."^[23] WotanJugend, a neo-Nazi group based in Kyiv and connected to the broader Azov political movement, has also used the Black Sun symbol to promote its group.^[24][25] During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, NATO tweeted a photo of a female Ukrainian soldier for International Women's Day. The soldier wore a symbol on her uniform that "appears to be the black sun symbol". After receiving complaints from social media users, NATO removed the tweet and stated "The post was removed when we realised it contained a symbol that we could not verify as official".^[26]

Other uses

According to Freedom House initiative Reporting Radicalism, the Black Sun is also used by some modern pagan and satanist groups as an esoteric symbol. They further note that it is sometimes used as a fashionable, aesthetic symbol, or misunderstood as having origins in ancient Scandinavian or Slavic cultures.^[27] The Anti-Defamation League notes that though the symbol is popular with white supremacists, imagery resembling the black sun features in many cultures, and should be analysed in the context it appears, and not necessarily interpreted as a sign of white supremacy or racism.^[5]