What is "volkstum"

The Volkstum (lit. folkdom or folklore, though the meaning is wider than the common usage of folklore) is the entire utterances of a Volk or ethnic minority over its lifetime, expressing a "Volkscharakter" this unit had in common. It was the defining idea of the Völkisch movement.

The term was coined by German nationalists in the context of Germany's " Freedom Wars", in marked and conscious opposition to the ideals of the French Revolution such as universal human rights. This sense of the word is now criticised in academia, though it is still in use in the protection of ethnic minorities and is a legal standard in Austria.