Editing Labrys (section)

==Symbol==
===Religion and spirituality===
The labrys is sometimes used as a symbol of [[Hellenism (religion)|Hellenic polytheism]].{{citation needed |date=July 2018}} As a symbol of the [[Modern Paganism|neopagan]] [[Goddess movement]], the labrys represents the memory of pre-[[patriarchal]] matristic societies.{{efn|"Women fought, as war leaders and in the ranks; women fought in troops, as regular soldiers; and the principal symbol of the Great Goddess, appearing widely throughout the Mediterranean and Asia Minor, was the double-headed battle axe or ''labrys''."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Miles |first1=Rosalind |title=The Women's History of the World |year=1989 |chapter=The Great Goddess |page=33 |publisher=Salem House |location=Topsfield, MA |isbn=0-88162-348-2 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/womenshistoryofw0000mile/page/33/mode/2up}}</ref>}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keller |first=Mara |year=1988 |title=Eleusinian Mysteries |url=http://www.ciis.edu/Documents/Keller%20Eleusinian%20Mysteries%201988%20part2_1.pdf |journal=Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion |volume=4 |issue=1 |page=42 |access-date=2016-06-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150908111212/https://www.ciis.edu/Documents/Keller%20Eleusinian%20Mysteries%201988%20part2_1.pdf |archive-date=September 8, 2015}}</ref>
===Political===
In Greece, the labrys was employed as a symbol of [[Metaxism]].<ref name=Metaxas>{{cite web |last=Markessinis |first=Andreas |date=August 22, 2006 |title=The labrys / pelekys: The symbol of thundergod Zeus and of the EON |website=Metaxas Project |url=http://metaxas-project.com/metaxas-symbols/ |access-date=August 31, 2014}}</ref> During the [[Totalitarianism|totalitarian]] period of the [[4th of August Regime]] (1936–1941), it represented the regime-sponsored [[National Organization of Youth]] (EON), as its leader, [[Ioannis Metaxas]], believed it to be the first symbol of all Hellenic civilizations.<ref name=Metaxas/>

The labrys symbol was also used prominently by the [[Vichy France]] regime, being featured on the personal flag of Chief of State [[Philippe Pétain]], on coins, and in various propaganda posters.<ref name=karlsgodt>{{cite book |first=Elizabeth |last=Karlsgodt |year=2011 |title=Defending National Treasures: French art and heritage under Vichy |publisher=Stanford University Press |pages=126–128 |isbn=978-0804770187}}</ref>

In the 1960s the labrys was also used by the Italian [[Neo-fascism|neo-fascist]] and [[Far-right politics|far-right]] movement [[Ordine Nuovo]], most prominently on their flag.<ref name="Ordine Nuovo">{{cite book |last1=Giannuli |first1=Aldo |last2=Rosati |first2=Elia | date=October 5, 2017 |title=Storia di Ordine Nuovo: La Piú Pericolosa Organizzazione Neo-Fascista Degli Anni Settanta |lang=it |trans-title=History of Ordine Nuovo: The most dangerous neo-fascist organization of the seventies |url=http://mimesisedizioni.it/passato-prossimo.html |place=Milan, IT |publisher=Mimesis Edizioni |isbn=978-8857538433}}</ref>

===Social movement===
[[File:Labrys Kettenanhänger.jpg|upright=0.7|thumb|Labrys jewelry of modern pagan and feminist movements]]
In [[feminist]] interpretations, the labrys is a [[symbol]] of [[matriarchy]].<ref name="Mavriyannaki">{{cite journal |last1=Mavriyannaki|first1=Caterina|title=La double hache dans le monde hellénique à l'âge de bronze|journal=Revue Archéologique |issue=2 |year=1983 |pages=195–228 |series=Nouvelle Série, Fasc.&nbsp;2 |lang=fr |trans-title=The Double Axe in the Hellenic World at the Bronze Age |jstor=41737054}}</ref>{{efn|
The forms taken by the labrys were classified by Caterina Mavriyannaki.
}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Biedermann |first1=Hans |title=Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural icons and the meanings behind them [Knaurs Lexikon der Symbole] |year=1992 |page=24 |publisher=[[Facts on File]] |location=New York, NY |isbn=0-8160-2593-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofsymb00bied_0/page/24/mode/2up |url-access=limited}}</ref> 

====Lesbian symbol====
[[File:Labrys Lesbian Flag.svg|thumb|150px|right|Labrys lesbian flag]]
In the 1970s, the labrys was adopted by the [[lesbian]] community, as a [[Lesbian feminism|lesbian feminist]] symbol, representing strength and self-sufficiency.<ref>Lesbian symbol:<br/>
{{cite book |editor1-last=Zimmerman |editor1-first=Bonnie |title=Lesbian Histories and Cultures: An Encyclopedia |year=2000 |edition=1st |page=748 |chapter=Symbols, Christy Stevens |publisher=[[Garland Publishing]] |isbn=0-8153-1920-7 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle00bzim/page/748/mode/2up |chapter-url-access=limited }}
:
{{cite book |last1=Myers |first1=JoAnne |title=Historical Dictionary of the Lesbian Liberation Movement: Still the Rage |year=2003 |edition=1st |page=156 |publisher=[[The Scarecrow Press]] |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=978-0810845060 |url=https://archive.org/details/tozlesbianlibera00myer/page/156/mode/2up |url-access=limited }}
:
{{cite book |title=The Alyson Almanac: A treasury of information for the gay and lesbian community |year=1989 |publisher=[[Alyson Publications]] |location=Boston, MA |chapter=Gay symbols through the ages |pages=[https://archive.org/details/alysonalmanactr00bost/page/99 99–100] |isbn=0-932870-19-8 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/alysonalmanactr00bost/page/99 |chapter-url-access=limited }}
:
{{cite book |editor-last1=Murphy |editor-first1=Timothy F. |title=Reader's Guide to Lesbian and Gay Studies |year=2000 |edition=1st |page=44 |publisher=[[Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers]] |location=Chicago, IL |isbn=1-57958-142-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FeWMAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA44 }}
:
{{cite web |last1=Pea |first1=Georgie |title=LABRYS Tool of Lesbian Feminism |url=http://findinglesbians.blogspot.com/2013/08/labrys-tool-of-lesbian-feminism.html |website=Finding Lesbians |date=9 August 2013 |access-date=10 July 2018 |archive-date=12 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112023141/http://findinglesbians.blogspot.com/2013/08/labrys-tool-of-lesbian-feminism.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
The labrys [[lesbian flag]], created in 1999,<ref name=Bendix>{{cite news |last=Bendix |first=Trish |date=September 8, 2015 |title=Why don't lesbians have a pride flag of our own? |website=[[AfterEllen]] |url=https://www.afterellen.com/people/452039-dont-lesbians-pride-flag |access-date=24 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909150736/https://www.afterellen.com/people/452039-dont-lesbians-pride-flag |archive-date=September 9, 2015}}</ref> involves a labrys superimposed on an inverted [[Black triangle (badge)|black triangle]] and set against a [[Violet (color)#Social movement|violet]] background.

In [[Kyrgyzstan]], "Labrys" is an LGBT rights organization. The group's goal is to improve the quality of life for all [[LGBT]] individuals in their country as well as Central Asia.<ref>{{cite web |title=Labrys|url=http://www.labrys.kg/en/ |website=Labrys Kyrgyzstan |date=2004–2014 |access-date=11 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522073114/https://labrys.kg/ |archive-date=May 22, 2013}}</ref> Similarly, "[[Labrisz Lesbian Association|Labrisz]]" is an association in [[Hungary]] for lesbian and bisexual women.
===Culture===
The double axe is used by Cretan folklore preservation societies and associations both in Greece and abroad, on occasion with the spelling "lavrys" reflecting modern Greek pronunciation.{{citation needed|date=July 2018}}

==== Film ====
In the 2025 film Lesbian Space Princess, the labrys is the "most powerful weapon known to lesbian kind" and the Straight White Maliens demand it as ransom, driving the plot. It serves as both a powerful weapon and a symbol of lesbian power, propelling Princess Saira's journey.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Hobbs |first1=Emma Hough |title=Lesbian Space Princess |date=2024-10-27 |type=Animation, Comedy, Fantasy |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt29781139/ |access-date=2025-02-19 |others=Shabana Azeez, Mark Samual Bonanno, Gemma Chua-Tran |publisher=We Made A Thing Studios |last2=Varghese |first2=Leela}}</ref>