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Caucasian race

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For the peoples actually from the Caucasus, see Peoples of the Caucasus.
The 4th edition of Meyers Konversationslexikon (Leipzig, 1885-1890) shows the "Caucasian race" (in blue) as comprising "Aryans", "Semites" and "Hamites". "Aryans" are further sub-divided into "European Aryans" and "Indo-Aryans" (the latter corresponding to the group now designated Indo-Iranians).
File:LA2-Blitz-0263Cauc.JPG
Meyers Blitz-Lexikon (Leipzig, 1932) divides "Caucasiod types" into: Nordic, Dinaric, Mediterranean, Alpine, East Baltic, Turks, Bedouins, Afghan.
Georgian girl (1881 photograph).

The Caucasian race, sometimes called the Caucasoid race,[1][2] is defined by the Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English as "relating to a broad division of humankind covering peoples from Europe, Western Asia, and parts of India and North Africa" or "white-skinned; of European origin" or "relating to the region of the Caucasus in SE Europe".[3] The concept's existence is based on the now disputed typological method of racial classification.[4][5]

In Europe, especially in Russia and nearby, the term "Caucasian" usually describes exclusively people who are from the Caucasus region or speak the Caucasian languages.

Origins of the term

The famed exemplary Georgian skull Blumenbach discovered in 1795 to hypothesize origination of Europeans from the Caucasus.

The term "Caucasian" originated as one of the racial categories recognized by 19th century craniology and is derived from the region of the Caucasus mountains[6].

The concept of the Caucasian race was first coined by 18th century anthropologist Christoph Meiners,[7] but it was first widely popularized under the name "Varietas Caucasia" by the German scientist and classical anthropologist, Johann Friedrich Blumenbach (1752-1840) who "borrowed the name Caucasian" from Meiners.[8] Blumenbach based the classification of the Caucasian race primarily on skull features, which Blumenbach claimed were optimized by the Caucasian peoples,[9] particularly a single skull from the Caucauses which resembled German skulls.[10] It was from this similarity that he conjectured Europeans having arisen in the Caucauses.[10] Blumenbach writes about the "primeval"[7] Caucasian race which he believed was "the oldest race of man"[7] and the "first variety of humankind"[7].

Caucasian variety - I have taken the name of this variety from Mount Caucasus, both because its neighborhood, and especially its southern slope, produces the most beautiful race of men, I mean the Georgian; and because all physiological reasons converge to this, that in that region, if anywhere, it seems we ought with the greatest probability to place the autochthones (birth place) of mankind[11]

The Caucasus was historically an area of fascination for Europeans; Prometheus and Jason and the Argonauts were myths featured in the Caucasus.[12] Greek mythology considered women from the Caucasus to have magical powers.[7], such as Medea of Jason and the Argonauts fame. In Greek mythology, this area was thought of as a kind of hell since Zeus imprisoned many Titans who opposed him (e.g. Prometheus) there. In a sense, these Titans were banished outside of the civilized world to an area inhabited by Colchians who, according to the xenophobic disposition of the time, were considered by the Greeks rather barbaric.[13]

Populations included

M.K. Bhasin claims that Caucasoids are descended from "Australoids" by a "differentiation, which probably took place in Asia".[14] 18th century anthropologist Christoph Meiners, who first defined the Caucasian race, posited a "binary racial scheme" of "two races" with the Caucasian whose racial purity was exemplified by the "venerated... ancient Germans" with some Europeans being impure "dirty whites" and "Mongolians" who consisted of everyone else.[7] Meiners did not include the Jews as Caucasians and ascribed them a "permanently degenerate nature".[15] Anthropologist Johann Blumenbach, Meiners contemporary, stated, "to this first variety [Caucasians] belong the inhabitants of Europe (except the Lapps and the remaining descendents of the Finns) and those of Eastern Asia, as far as the river Obi, the Caspian Sea, and the Ganges; and lastly, those of North Africa" [7] Once Blumenbach had established the "superiority of Caucasians", the term became detached from its geographical origin, and actual Caucasians lost their semiotic standing as "ur-Europeans". [7]

People of India

In regards to India, 19th century anthropologists Thomas Huxley said the "Aryan invaders were white men. It is hardly doubted that they intermixed with the dark Dravidian aborginees", making Indians "mongrel[s]"[16] Edgar Thurston considered "Brahmans(sic) of the south [of India] are not pure Aryans but are a mix of the Aryan and Dravidian race." [17] 20th century athropologist Carleton Coon said that within the Caucasoid race there is a "third division [Mediterraneans which]... included... southern India" but remarked this group had "facial features of a Veddoid character which in some instances suggest Australoid affinities."[18] He further elaborated that in India there are "Veddoids... individuals who are to all extents and purposes Australoid" Over the exact racial composition of India Coon admitted, "[t]he racial history of southern Asia has not yet been thoroughly worked out, and it is too early to postulate what these relationships may be...[I] shall leave the problems of Indian physical anthropology in the competent hands of Guha and of Bowles."[18] Associate Justice George Sutherland found in United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind that while Thind, an Asian Indian, may have had "purity of Aryan blood'" due to being "born in Punjab" and having "high caste" status he was not Caucasian in the "common understanding".[19] George Sutherland wrote in his summary:

[19]

The eligibility of this applicant for citizenship is based on the sole fact that he is of high caste Hindu stock, born in Punjab, one of the extreme northwestern districts of India, and classified by certain scientific authorities as of the Caucasian or Aryan race...In the Punjab and Rajputana [Rajasthan], while the invaders seem to have met with more success in the effort to preserve their racial purity, intermarriages did occur producing an intermingling of the two and destroying to a greater or less degree the purity of the “Aryan” blood. The rules of caste, while calculated to prevent this intermixture, seem not to have been entirely successful... the given group [Asian Indian] cannot be properly assigned to any of the enumerated grand racial divisions. The type may have been so changed by intermixture of blood as to justify an intermediate classification. Something very like this has actually taken place in India. Thus, in Hindustan [India] and Berar [town in India] there was such an intermixture of the “Aryan” invader with the dark-skinned Dravidian.[19]

More recently geneticist Cavalli-Sforza has written:

The Caucasoids are mainly fair-skinned peoples, but this group also includes the southern Indians, who live in tropical areas and show signs of a marked darkening in skin pigmentation, although their facial and body traits are Caucasoid rather than African or Australian.[20]

Physical characteristics

18th century anthropologist Christoph Meiners, who first defined the term, characterized the "Caucasian" as having the characteristics of "lightness", "beauty" and being "handsome" with the "ancient Germans" having the "whitest, most blooming and most delicate skin" because they were the most racially pure Caucasians.[7] 18th century anthropologist Johann Blumenbach, the second person to define the term, considered Caucasians to be the top of "racial hierarchy" he organized where, "the white color holds the first place, such as it is that most Europeans. The redness of cheeks in this variety is almost peculiar to it: at all events it is but seldom seen in the rest." and described Caucasians as, "Color white, Cheeks rosy; hair brown or chestnut-colored; head subglobular; face oval, straight, its parts moderately defined, forehead smooth, nose narrow, slightly hooked, mouth small. The primary teeth placed perpendicularly to each jaw: the lips (especially the lower one) moderately open, the chin full and rounded."[7] In 2003, the term "Caucasoid race" is a term used in physical anthropology to refer to people of a certain range of anthropometric measurements [21]. The 2007 Encyclopedia Britannica characterizes the Caucasoid race as having light skin color, biochemical similarities and a variability in hair and eye colors.[22] University of College Cork chair of anatomy and physiology, M. A. MacConaill,[23] describes Caucasoids as being "native to Europe... [and having] light skin and eyes, narrow noses, and thin lips. Their hair is usually straight or wavy".[24] Caucasoids are said to have the lowest degree of projection of the alveolar bones which contain the teeth, a notable size prominence of the cranium and forehead region, and a projection of the midfacial region.

Usage

With the turn away from racial theory in the late 20th century, the term "Caucasian" as a racial classification fell into disuse in Europe. Consequently, in the United Kingdom, the term "Caucasian" is more likely than in the United States to describe people from the Caucasus, although it may still be used as a racial classification.[25] Sarah A Tishkoff and Kenneth K Kidd state, "Despite disagreement among anthropologists, this classification remains in use by many researchers, as well as lay people."[26] According to Leonard Lieberman, Rodney C. Kirk, and Alice Littlefield, the concept of race has all but been completely rejected by modern mainstream anthropology.[27] In 2003, United States National Library of Medicine stopped using the term Caucasian race in favor of the term "European".[28] In the United States, the term "Caucasian" has been mainly a distinction based on looking white, not being Hispanic, and being descended from a people who are "symbolic Christians" (excluding the people descended from the Muslim regions of the Middle East).[7]

Notes

  1. ^ The Oxford English Dictionary defines "Caucasoid" as as noun or adjective meaning "Of, pertaining to, or resembling the Caucasian race."
  2. ^ http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50034773?single=1&query_type=word&queryword=Caucasoid&first=1&max_to_show=10
  3. ^ http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/caucasian?view=uk
  4. ^ O'Neil, Dennis. "Biological Anthropology Terms." 2006. May 13, 2007. Palomar College.[1]
  5. ^ http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/first/gill.html Does Race Exist? A proponent's perspective by George W. Gill.
  6. ^ University of Pennsylvania [2]
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Painter, Nell Irvin. Yale Univeristy. "Why White People are Called Caucasian?" 2003. September 27, 2007. [3]
  8. ^ University of Pennsylvania [4]
  9. ^ Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, The anthropological treatises of Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, translated by Thomas Bendyshe. 1865. November 2, 2006. [5]
  10. ^ a b Gossett, Thomas F. New Edition Race The History of an Idea in America. New York:Oxford University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-19-509778-5 p. 38
  11. ^ Blumenbach , De generis humani varietate nativa (3rd ed. 1795), trans. Bendyshe (1865). Quoted e.g. in Arthur Keith, Blumenbach's Centenary, Man, Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (1940).
  12. ^ Caucasus, Historical Notes [6]
  13. ^ (Ovid, Metamorphoses V 830-845)
  14. ^ Bhasin, M.K. University of Delhi, Department of Anthropology. "Genetics of Castes and Tribes in India." Kamla-Raj, 2006. p.244
  15. ^ Eigen, Sara. The German Invention of Race. Suny Press:New York, 2006. ISBN 0-79146-677-9 p.205
  16. ^ Huxley, Thomas. Collected Essays of Thomas Huxley: Man's Place in Nature and Other Kessinger Publishing: Montana, 2005. ISBN 1417974621 p.284
  17. ^ Bond, J. W. Southern India. Foreign and Colonial Compiling and Pub. Co: London, 1915. ISBN 8120613449
  18. ^ a b Coon, Carleton S. The Races of Europe. Greenwood:USA, 1972 ISBN 0837163285 p.2
  19. ^ a b c United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, Certificate From The Circuit Court Of Appeals For The Ninth Circuit., No. 202. Argued January 11, 12, 1923.—Decided February 19, 1923, United States Reports, v. 261, The Supreme Court, October Term, 1922, 204–215.
  20. ^ The Great Human Diasporas by Cavali-Sforza, 1995, pg 119-120
  21. ^ Reinhard, K.J., & Hastings, D. (Annual 2003) Learning from the ancestors: the value of skeletal study.(study of ancestors of Omaha Tribe of Nebraska). In American Journal of Physical Anthropology, p177(1).
  22. ^ Encyclopedia Britannica Online. "Europe the people." 2007. August 23, 2007.[7]
  23. ^ University of College Cork. Department of Anatomy. 2007. September 5, 2007. [8]
  24. ^ M. A. MacConaill. The Last Two Million Years: Reader's Digest History of Man. Readers Digest. 1981. ISBN 0895770180
  25. ^ Katsiavriades, Kryss. Qureshi, Talaat. English Usage in the UK and USA. 1997. October 26, 2006. [9]; see also Pearsell, Judy and Trumble, Bill (Eds) Oxford English Reference Dictionary. 2002.
  26. ^ http://www.nature.com/ng/journal/v36/n11s/full/ng1438.html
  27. ^ Leonard Lieberman, Rodney C. Kirk, and Alice Littlefield, "Perishing Paradigm: Race—1931-99," American Anthropologist 105, no. 1 (2003): 110-13
  28. ^ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/nd03/nd03_med_data_changes.html

References

  • Leroi, Armand Marie (2005-03-14). "A Family Tree in Every Gene". The New York Times. p. A23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  • Lewonin, R. C. (2005). "Confusions About Human Races". Race and Genomics, Social Sciences Research Council. Retrieved 2006-12-28.
  • Painter, Nell Irvin (2003). "Collective Degradation: Slavery and the Construction of Race. Why White People are Called Caucasian" (PDF). Yale University. Retrieved 2006-10-09. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  • Risch, Neil (2002). "Categorization of humans in biomedical research: genes, race and disease". Genome Biology. 3 (7): comment2007.2001 - comment2007.2012. doi:doi:10.1186/gb-2002-3-7-comment2007. {{cite journal}}: Check |doi= value (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  • Rosenberg, Noah A. (2002-12-20). "Genetic structure of human populations". Science. 298 (5602): 2381–2385. doi:10.1126/science.1078311. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  • Rosenberg, Noah A. "Clines, Clusters, and the Effect of Study Design on the Inference of Human Population Structure". PLoS Genet. 1 (6): e70. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.0010070. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)
  • Templeton, Alan R. (1998). "Human races: A genetic and evolutionary perspective". American Anthropologist. 100 (3): 632–650. Retrieved 2007-01-01. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  • Camberg, Kim (2005-12-13). "Long-term tensions behind Sydney riots". BBC News. Retrieved 2007-03-03. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

Literature

  • Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, On the Natural Varieties of Mankind (1775) — the book that introduced the concept
  • Stephen Jay Gould, The Mismeasure of Man — a history of the pseudoscience of race, skull measurements, and IQ inheritability
  • L. Luca Cavalli-Sforza, The History and Geography of Human Genes — a major reference of modern population genetics
  • L. Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Genes, Peoples, and Languages
  • H. F. Augstein, "From the Land of the Bible to the Caucasus and Beyond," in Waltraud Emst and B. Harris, Race, Science and Medicine, 1700-1960 (London: Routledge, 1999): 58-79.
  • Bruce Baum, The Rise and Fall of the Caucasian Race: A Political History of Racial Identity (New York: New York University Press, 2006)
  • Paul Lawrence Guthrie, The Making of the Whiteman: From the Original Man to the Whiteman (Paperback), ISBN 0-948390-49-2
  • The Hidden Frontier: Ecology and Ethnicity in an Alpine Valley, by John W. Cole (Author), Eric R. Wolf University of California Press; 1 edition (October 11, 1999) ISBN-10: 0520216814 ISBN-13: 978-0520216815

See also

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