Human Races: What Does it Really Mean?

The term race is very hard and almost imposible to define, eventhough many people think they have a clear understanding of its meaning. Many people confuse human races to the different cultures that exist within races and it is not a true basis for racial distinction. There are four different races consisting of Caucacians, which refer to white Americans with light color skin, and it is also called the white race. We also have Mongoloids, which refer to an Asian race consisting of the Orientasl and also called the yellow race. Another race is Negroid, which consists of colored people from Africa and which is also called the Black race. The last of the four human races is called Australoids, which consists of people from Australia which is also called the Red race. A clear definition for race might say: "Race is a group of persons connected by common descent, blood, or heredity characterized by a more or less unique combination of physical traits."

It is not appropriate to apply the term race to national, cultural groups, or religions, nor can it be compared with mental characteristics, such as personality, intelligence, or character. To which race a person belongs can be determined by the DNA, Skull Structure, and various traits such as skin color, hair form, and their body shape. In the United States and other countries the term race refers mainly to culturally created realities rather than biological differences.

One of the major four human races is Caucasian Race or White race. It is used almost exclusevely in North America to refer to "Whites White" or any White person of European ancestry. In the United States, it is used primarely to distinguish skin color. It was once considered as a category of human racial groups based on geographic, linguistic, and genetic origin. The Caucasoid were found in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East to North India. They are characterized with fine texture light blond to dark brown hair, and it can be staright or wavy. Their skin color is characterized as pale reddish white to olive brown, and of medium to tall stature with a long or broad head form. They have light blue to dark brown eyes and their nose bridge is usually high. The word Caulcasian derives from measurements in craniology from the 19th century. It steams from the fact that its various ethnic groups were thought to have been originlly from the region of the Caulcacian Mountains. There are many specific cultures within the Caucacian race such as Hispanics, Latinos( spanish-speaking people living in the United States), Mexicans, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, where terms such as trigeño, blanco and moreno are perceived by Puerto Ricans as racial classifications. Skin color and other physical characteristics are used by residents in the island of Puerto Rico to identify themselves in terms of race. Although they are tied by the same language, Spanish-speaking Americans do not share the same beliefs, values, and religion.

Another major human race is Mongoloid or Yellow race, sometimes incorrectly called Sinoid. This race refers to poeople of North Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, Oceania or the Americas as natives. The race Mongoloid is divided into many smaller groups in Central Asia and the Arctic regions. Some of this groups are called the Han Chinese, which is the largest of these groups; Yakuts, Eskimos, Tibetans, and, of course, Mongolians. In Central Asia, the Uzbeks, the Kyrgyz, and the Kazakhs are Turkic Mongoloid, the Western cousins of the Mongolians. The Turkmen, while are still Central Asian, Turkic-Mongoloids, have mixed heavily with Caucasoid neighbors to the west. The Tajiks are completely Caucasoid, and even speak an Indo-European language.

The Mongoloid race from East Asia have been described with a color skin as being saffron to yellow or reddish brown. Their stature is medium, with a board head form; their eyes are black to brown, and their hair color is described as being straight and dark; also their body hair is light. Mongoloids are also recognized for the epicanthic fold, imparting an almond shape to the eye, and the nose bridge is usually low or medium.

Another important human race is Negroid or Black race. It classifies people from Sub-Saharan Africa and East Africa. It includes people who indicated their race or races as "Black, African Am., or Negro". Negroid comes from Negro, which originally comes from the Spanish/Portuguese word, meaning black in color. The Negroid race is characterized by their brown to brown-black skin. Their hair is dark and coarse; the Negroid race has long head form, varying stature, and thick averted lips. Their eyes are dark, the nose bridge low, and their nostrils broad. The Black race has always been discriminated because of their dark color.

The last of the four human races is Astroloids. This people come from Australia along with various people of Southeast Asia, as well as arrears of Asia or Oceania. They are classified by their physical characteristics such as dark skin and dark curly hair. This race is also divided into groups, which includes the Australian Aborigines, the Papuans, the Melanesians, the Negritos of Southeast Asia, the Veddahs of Sri Lanka, and the Micronesians. Comparing Austroloids with other races, we can see that they have a deep infraglabellar notch, strong projection of the lower face, and a flat forehead. They also have narrow skulls than other robust humans. Today the Australoid race form a genetic group that represents the region known as Sahul, a land that connected Australia to New Guinea.

In conclusion, race is a population of humans different from other populations. There are four major human races which consist of the Caucasians, also referred to as the White race; the Mongoloid or Yellow race; the Negroid or black race, and the Australoids. Each different race has its own traits, especially their skin color and facial features. They also have different cultures within the same race and are often controversial due to their impact on social identity hence identity politics.