Vom Gelben Flicken zum Judenstern? : Genese und Applikation von Judenabzeichen im Islam und christlichen Europa (849-1941)

Traces the adoption of a Jewish "badge" in Islamic and Christian European countries, created in order to distinguish the Jews from the rest of the population. The first such item, a special head covering, was decreed by Caliph al-Mutawakkil in the 9th century. A decision of the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 marked the onset of Jewish badges in Christian Europe. In both of the above cases its color was yellow, although the shape of the badge differed in various places - it was a yellow blotch in the Islamic world and a yellow wheel in southern France. There is no proof that the Islamic badge led to the European wheel, or vice versa. Pp. 95-137 deal with the Nazi period. At first, Hitler did not favor the badge, but he changed his mind under the influence of Goebbels, and by 1941 all Jews had to wear a yellow star with the word "Jude" on it. Concludes that there is a possibility that the Nazis adopted the stigmatizing yellow color from the medieval tradition, but the form of the badge, the star of David, emanated from a Jewish religious and political symbol. Includes bibliographical references (pages 145-160 and index. 169 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm