Thor Steinar was a German fashion label registered as a trademark by Axel Kopelke in October 2002. The label's logo consisted of a combination of a Tyr and a Sol rune. The label was popular among young Neo-Nazis, and it was possibly based on the very similar logo of the Kassel based Neo-Nazi "think tank" Thule Seminar. It has been outlawed by a Brandenburg court as containing fascist symbols prohibited by the German constitution on November 17, 2004.

Not only has the sale of clothing bearing the logo been outlawed, one woman was also fined 300 Euro for wearing a Thor Steinar sweater in public. The ruling created some controversy, because the logo, while undisputedly popular among right-wing extremists, also had a significant number of unpolitical buyers who were unaware of any fascist connection. It is also remarkable that there is now a precedent of a German court as it were outlawing individual Futhark letters (as opposed to historical Nazi emblems that contain runes, such as the SS-badge, which have been unconstitutional in Germany since 1949 (see Denazification)). Critics of the ruling have also argued that it unnecessarily creates sympathy with Neo-Nazi groups among unpolitical buyers who feel treated unfairly.

External links

• official homepage (http://thorsteinar.de)
• report on the court ruling (http://www.hagalil.com/archiv/2004/10/steinar.htm) (German language link)

de:Thor Steinar