Jedem das Seine

"Jedem das Seine" is a German translation of Suum cuique, the Latin phrase meaning "to each his own". The English idiomatic meaning of Jedem das Seine is "to each according to his merits."

History

Antiquity

The Latin phrase goes back an old Greek principle of justice which translates literally into English as "to each his own," but with the idiomatic meaning of "to each what he deserves" or "to each according to his merits." In his Politeia, Plato concluded that justice is realised, "when each and everyone minds his own business, and does not involve in everything" (Greek: to ta auton prattein kai me polypragmonein dikaiosyne; IV 433a). Everyone should do according to his abilities and capabilities, to serve the country and the society as a whole. Also, everyone should receive "his own" (e.g. rights) and not be deprived of "his own" (e.g. property) (433e).

The phrase was made famous by the Roman author, orator and politician Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BC - 43 BC): "Justitia suum cuique distribuit." ("Justice renders to everyone his due." (De Natura Deorum, III, 38.) De Finibus, Bonorum et Malorum, liber V, 67: "(...) ut fortitudo in laboribus periculisque cernatur, (...), iustitia in suo cuique tribuendo." - "so that fortitude may be seen in hardship and danger, (...) justice in attributing to each his own").

Order of the Black Eagle with the motto Suum Cuique in the medallion's center

Prussia

The Order of the Black Eagle (German: Hoher Orden vom Schwarzen Adler) was the highest order of chivalry in King Frederick the Great's Kingdom of Prussia. The Order of the Black Eagle's motto was "Suum cuique" (idiomatically "to each according to his merits") and this motto is still used by the German military police (the Feldjäger). It was a symbol of the liberalism and religious tolerance of the Prussian Kingdom, which meant that "each can do as they choose", but all citizens must unite in their support of Prussia.

Nazi Germany

In 1937, the Nazis constructed the Buchenwald concentration camp, near Weimar, Germany. The slogan Jedem das Seine (literally "to each his own", but figuratively "everyone gets what he deserves") was placed over the camp's main entrance gate. Jedem das Seine was a typical propaganda phrase of the time, similar to Arbeit macht frei. (In English, Arbeit macht frei means "work shall set you free".) Arbeit macht frei was the slogan placed above the entrances at other Nazi concentration camps, including Auschwitz, Dachau concentration camp, Gross-Rosen, Sachsenhausen and the Theresienstadt. Between July 1938 and April 1945, some 240,000 people were incarcerated in Buchenwald by the Nazi regime, including 168 Western Allied POWs. The number of deaths at Buchenwald is estimated at 56,545. The Buchenwald concentration camp provided slave labour for local industry (arms industry of Wilhelm-Gustloff-Werk). World War II ended with Nazi Germany's defeat and division into East and West Germany. From 1945 to 1950, the Soviet Union used the occupied Buchenwald concentration camp, Weimar, German Democratic Republic (aka East Germany), to imprison defeated Nazis and other Germans. The camp slogan remained Jedem das Seine. On 6 January 1950, the Soviets handed over Buchenwald to the East German Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The main gate of Buchenwald concentration camp, Weimar, Germany

Other uses

The phrase is still used commonly as a proverb in German-speaking countries.

Several modern advertising campaigns in the German language, including ads for Nokia, Rewe grocery stores, Burger King, and Merkur Bank have been marred by controversy after using the phrase "Jedem das Seine" or "Jedem den Seinen." An ExxonMobil ad campaign in January 2009 touted Tchibo coffee drinks at the company's Esso stores with the slogan "Jedem den Seinen!" The ads were withdrawn after protest from the Central Council of Jews in Germany, and a company spokesman said its advertising contractor had been unaware of the proverb's association with Nazism. In March 2009, a student group associated with the Christian Democratic Union used the slogan for an education campaign in North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany), but later withdrew it due to public outcry.

See also

• Prussia