Arbeit macht frei

For the album, see Arbeit macht frei (album).

Slogan displayed at Auschwitz
Theresienstadt in the Czech Republic

Arbeit macht frei ([ˈaʁbaɪt ˈmaxt ˈfʁaɪ] ⓘ) is a German phrase translated as "Work makes one free" or more idiomatically "Work sets you free" or "work liberates".

The phrase originates from the 1873 novel Die Wahrheit macht frei ("The truth sets free") by Lorenz Diefenbach, a pastor and philologist, itself being a reference to John 8:31–32 of the Gospel of John. Following the Nazi Party's rise to power in 1933, the phrase became a slogan used in employment programs put into effect to combat mass unemployment in Germany at the time.[1] It is nowadays known for its use above the entrance of Auschwitz and other Nazi concentration camps.[2]

  1. ^ "Arbeit macht frei". auschwitz.org. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  2. ^ Encyclopedia of the Holocaust, Yad Vashem, 1990, vol. 4, p. 1751.