Your city's multiracial population/mixed unions

[yaletown_fella]

Originally Posted by eschaton

One of the biggest reasons that Jews (and Christians) in the Middle East tend to be lighter than Muslims is the Arab slave trade.

In the Islamic world, slavery worked a bit differently than in America, insofar as any mixed-race offspring they fathered upon their female slaves would be given freedom - and more or less treated as any other Arab. As a result, much of the black DNA blended into the Muslim Arab population over time. In most cases outside of North Africa this isn't more than 10%, but it's enough to give them a distinct "look" compared to the non-Muslims of the area.

I had no idea about this, very good point. Thats a stark contrast to the balkans.

Almost all the bosnian muslims Ive met and encountered are generally light featured while around half of the Serbs Ive come across have olive skin and dark hair. Although they are both quite tall on average.

Bosnians converted to islam some 600 years ago , partially to avoid paying jizya tax to the Ottoman rulers but also because the majority of the population didnt resonate with Christianity the same way other areas did . A lot of people also forget there here were a sizeable population of Hungarian muslims who fled to settle in yugoslavia after Hungary was taken over by very militant Christian rulers. There is next to zero Turkish ancestry in native Bosnians, at least no more than any other country in eastern europe.

[muppet]

Originally Posted by yaletown_fella

This is also evident in the indigenous population of the Solomon Islands who have brown skin, soft african-like features but often a thick head of curly platinum blond hair.

The blonde hair in the Solomans has recently been found to be a natural mutation, not -as widely believed - to be ancestry from past explorers. The same for the Kalash tribes in Pakistan (who themselves believed they were derived from Alexander the Great), and the Hmong people in Vietnam. The natural mutation is of course how it came about in the first place among Europeans.

[muppet]

Light hair/ eyes can be quite a recessive gene, but in places like Afghanistan -itself a true melting pot of races from the Silk Road it can be common.








https://thebetterindia-english.sgp1..../09/afghan.jpg

[Segun]

Originally Posted by ChrisLA

People see me and mistake me for Mexican, White American, Armenian, Greek, in New York they tell me I look Puerto Rican, or Italian. Usually the only people who get it right is Black folks. As I said before, we generally pick up on it right away. Sometimes it can be something very subtle as the way we carry ourselves, but other things I can’t explain.

100%

I usually get the squinty eyed look for a half a second before I get referred to as Brother, even with a mask on. Maybe it’s the rhythm in my step. The minute I talk it’s obvious, since Dad was a no show and I have no White family members that influenced my speech. I get the Latino thing all the time. I was also told I look like a Bedouin. I bet you can find someone in Black America that looks like they can be from every region, especially in New Orleans.

[ChrisLA]

Originally Posted by Segun

100%

I usually get the squinty eyed look for a half a second before I get referred to as Brother, even with a mask on. Maybe it’s the rhythm in my step. The minute I talk it’s obvious, since Dad was a no show and I have no White family members that influenced my speech.

Just like you once I open my mouth, immediately they can tell I’m black. My siblings and I also spent a considerable amount of time around my dad’s Mexican-American family but African American side had the biggest impact on our lives. But I will say that I love both soul food and mexican food equally, and I’m not talking about Taco Bell.

You and I definitely speak different, my accent has the influence of Louisiana, and I hear more of the the black Chicago accent in your speech. although your tone is low compared to the Chicago folks I know. I can be loud, at least that’s what my wife tells me(lol).

The funny thing is I’m a native Angeleno yet I don’t think I sound like your typical African American Angeleno. Quite often white people (Angelenos) ask me where I’m from because here’s this non black looking person who speaks different than expected. Black people on the other hand will ask me if I’m Creole, particularly those who are from New Orleans in southern Louisiana, and others will just say I knew you were black when you opened that mouth. The one thing that’s annoying is when people ask me the question about being Creole. A lot of the time I feel as if they are trying to separate themselves from the rest of us, I’m not having that. We are all just black, and I make that clear I’m not color conscious.

[Segun]

Originally Posted by ChrisLA

The one thing that’s annoying is when people ask me the question about being Creole. A lot of the time I feel as if they are trying to separate themselves from the rest of us, I’m not having that. We are all just black, and I make that clear I’m not color conscious.

I feel like people just use creole as a one shoe fits all category for different types of Black people. It’s like “Indian“.

[MolsonExport]

my kids are mixed. my wife is ethnic Korean. I am Caucasian.

[pj3000]

The common black+white mixed unions and resulting offspring is something that always surprises me about the Pittsburgh region's economically-depressed Mon Valley.

Once-booming steel towns line both sides of the Monongahela River as it snakes its way north from West Virginia. What would have been taboo (to say the least) decades ago, now seems quite common, as the socioeconomic disparity between black and white denizens of the area has greatly lessened to the point of equality.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by muppet

The blonde hair in the Solomans has recently been found to be a natural mutation, not -as widely believed - to be ancestry from past explorers. The same for the Kalash tribes in Pakistan (who themselves believed they were derived from Alexander the Great), and the Hmong people in Vietnam. The natural mutation is of course how it came about in the first place among Europeans.

Blond hair among Melanesians is a different mutation than among Europeans. IIRC no one has done a study of the Hmong to find out about that particular case. But in the case of the Kalash, it's the same mutation as Europeans. The common ancestors of both groups (proto-Indo-Europeans) were mostly dark-haired (probably looked southern Euro overall) but there were light skin/hair/eye genes in a minority of the population. Over centuries there was parallel selection towards lighter complexion in both areas.