Erika - Deutsches Marschlied [+Liedtext]

“Erika“ is a German marching song. “Erika“ is both a common German female name and the German word for heather. The lyrics and melody of the song were written by Herms Niel in 1938, a German composer of marches. Although the song itself has nothing to do with war or militarism, it became popular especially among soldiers, because this folk tune was able to turn away the thoughts about war and give the soldier a feeling of home - such as the song Lili Marleen did. Although the song is repeatedly referred to as a “Nazi song“, this term does not describe the song at all. It wasn’t really an exclusive military song and was also a popular hit among the civilian population. The fact that the song became particularly popular due to the ideology of the Third Reich is due to the zeitgeist, but should not be blamed on the song itself. The song is also often associated with war crimes or militarism in some movies, which not only does the song an injustice; It is therefore also misrepres