There has been quite some discussion on this forum and others about 'Mediterraneans' and their 'whiteness'. Physical anthropologists like Coon often used the word 'Mediterranean' in a very broad way, often including many North Africans, Middle Easterners, and sometimes even Indians, Irano-Afghans, etc. If Coon's data is to be believed, there is indeed a band of relative morphological homogeneity that stretches from Iberia across North Africa into Asia.
Yet several genetic studies (see, for example, the images below) show that Europeans tend to cluster together and that there is a significant genetic gap between Southern Europe and North Africa. This is remarkable, given the similarities physical anthropologists saw. So how is this to be explained? Can we speak of a Europid proper race (i.e. a typically European branch of the wider Caucasoid race) - and how does the idea of an intercontinental Mediterranean race fit in?
I'd like to use this thread to discuss the validity of the Europid concept and how the 'Mediterranean' Europeans fit in, especially since there has been a conflict of opinion on this between grand members Loki and Eriksson. While Eriksson defended the idea of a Nordish group within a Europid proper group within a wider Caucasoid race, Loki only acknowledged the validity of the Nordish and Caucasoid concepts. I think this is an important issue that should be tackled.
To avoid confusion, please do not equate Europid with Caucasoid in this thread. Europid will be defined as the typically European branch of the Caucasoid race, including the following subracial types; Nordid, East Baltid, Alpinid, Dinarid & Mediterranean (in Baker's terminology) or, in Gunther's terms, Nordisch, Fälisch, Ostisch, Westisch, Ostbaltisch, Dinarisch.
Personally, I think there actually was a Mediterranean root race from which the Southern Europeans, North Africans, Middle Easterners, etc descend. However, these groups drifted apart because of cultural and geographical barriers. Moreover, the North African groups absorbed local blood (and a little Negroid, especially recently), while the Southern Europeans primarily exchanged genes with the more northern Europeans. Madison Grant even called Southern Europeans 'Nordicized Mediterraneans'.
As Mediterranean traits tend to be dominant while Central and (especially) Northern European traits are more recessive, a certain degree of phenotypical resemblence between the Mediterranean types was maintained (though no schooled man would confuse the average Iberian with an Arab).
This might be an explanation, but I'm not sure how many reliable evidence there is for this theory. Just for the record; I do ascribe to the Europid concept, even though the borders are obviously very blurred (but so are the Nordish, and Caucasoid borders) and the races that belong to the Europid group have a diverse evolutionary past.
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