(population). Bertolt Brecht formulated it as: The Volk is not tümlich. In the DDR the term "Volk" – without "-tum" – expressed the supposed conformity of the population with the SED and the state in such word combinations as Volksdemokratie, Volkspolizei and Volksarmee. By contrast a later opposition slogan was "Wir sind das Volk". In Austria the concept was equally needed, but in a multi-ethnic monarchy. Thus in the 1976 National Minorities Act the term "Volksgruppe" served approximately as a synonym for national minority, according to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities of the Council of Europe. Section 6 in the German Federal Expellee Law also used the expression. The legislature of Switzerland explained Volkstum, at the time of ratification of the Framework Convention, as "inspired by the desire [...] to together preserve what relates to their common identity, including their culture, their traditions, their religion or their language". In accordance with this legislation Volkstum is primarily used to mean an expression of the self-perception of a population group. In its popular sense (close to the usual English sense of folklore), the term appears occasionally in Germany as describing regional traditions (the Volkstum of the Danube Swabians, Sorbs, Frisians, etc.). See also Volksgeist Volkstumspflege Volkstumspolitik RKFDV National identity References Germanic mysticism Politics of Nazi Germany Majority–minority relations Nationalism in Germany German words and phrases