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There's a little bit of black blood in everyone
My Indian colleague reckons that if we trace our ancestry back far enough, there's a little bit of black or Asian blood in all of us. If that's the case, it includes Nick Griffin.
Has anyone ever traced his lineage? Wouldn't it be the ultimate irony if he had some black ancestry?
Has anyone ever traced his lineage? Wouldn't it be the ultimate irony if he had some black ancestry?
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The whole of the human race has its ancestry in a few tribes from Africa, so your colleague has clearly got a point.
However the few skeletal remains of those early tribes don't tell us anything about their skin colouring. It might have been that everyone was originally black and then those who moved northwards gradually lost the protective skin pigmentation which wasn't required away Africa. But it seems more likely that everyone was originally 'white' and that the skin pigmentation acquired by those peoples who remained in Africa was a later evolutionary development.
Chris
However the few skeletal remains of those early tribes don't tell us anything about their skin colouring. It might have been that everyone was originally black and then those who moved northwards gradually lost the protective skin pigmentation which wasn't required away Africa. But it seems more likely that everyone was originally 'white' and that the skin pigmentation acquired by those peoples who remained in Africa was a later evolutionary development.
Chris
why would that be, Chris? Wouldn't those who had white skin while still in Africa have been at an evolutionary disadvantage? You'd expect the ones with darker skin to have a better chance of survival. We were in Africa from about 200,000 years ago and started to migrate 70,000 years ago. It would be odd if we stayed white for 130,000 years and then changed colour only in the last 70,000, wouldn't it?
It not very often I disagree with Chris but I think it's unlikely he's right about us all being white originally.
If the current scientific theory about the origins of man is to be believed then every one of us came out of central Africa. Assuming this is the case, it's unlikely that Homo Sapiens had light skin. It stands to reason that a creature such as ourselves with precious little body hair would have survived long as a species living in the central African sun without factor 50 sunscreen.
Again, assuming it's true that we all came out of Africa, it seems far more likely to me that Homo Sapiens started out having very dark skin and as they began to migrate and populate the less sun-drenched parts of the world, over a period of hundreds of thousands of years (anywhere from 400,000 and 250,000 years ago) and tens of thousands of generations, certain 'tribes' of humans gradually found that their skin pigmentation became lighter. This would make evolutionary sense too as organisms that receive no light are often very light skinned (sometime even transparent) as they have no biological need to repel sunlight.
If the current scientific theory about the origins of man is to be believed then every one of us came out of central Africa. Assuming this is the case, it's unlikely that Homo Sapiens had light skin. It stands to reason that a creature such as ourselves with precious little body hair would have survived long as a species living in the central African sun without factor 50 sunscreen.
Again, assuming it's true that we all came out of Africa, it seems far more likely to me that Homo Sapiens started out having very dark skin and as they began to migrate and populate the less sun-drenched parts of the world, over a period of hundreds of thousands of years (anywhere from 400,000 and 250,000 years ago) and tens of thousands of generations, certain 'tribes' of humans gradually found that their skin pigmentation became lighter. This would make evolutionary sense too as organisms that receive no light are often very light skinned (sometime even transparent) as they have no biological need to repel sunlight.
Continued...
However, the whole 'Out Of Africa' scenario fails to address a fundamental issue – that of physiology. Skin colour aside, how does the 'African Origin Theory' explain the very distinct physiological differences between current races?
It's glaringly obvious that East Asian people look (at least facially) physiologically different to Europeans and different again from central and Southern Africans. The Southern and Central Africans typically having distinctly wider and flatter noses than Europeans and East Asians. The Europeans typically have elongated noses and higher foreheads than their African counterparts. And the Eastern Asians typically have a 'flattened' profile.
These physiological differences are intriguing and I have yet to hear anyone convincingly explain why they exist at all as the differences seem to be of no evolutionary value whatsoever. And before anyone sees this an an opportunity to suggest that 'God did it' I would remind them that Noah and his family – according to the Bible - all shared the same physiology and skin pigmentation.
However, the whole 'Out Of Africa' scenario fails to address a fundamental issue – that of physiology. Skin colour aside, how does the 'African Origin Theory' explain the very distinct physiological differences between current races?
It's glaringly obvious that East Asian people look (at least facially) physiologically different to Europeans and different again from central and Southern Africans. The Southern and Central Africans typically having distinctly wider and flatter noses than Europeans and East Asians. The Europeans typically have elongated noses and higher foreheads than their African counterparts. And the Eastern Asians typically have a 'flattened' profile.
These physiological differences are intriguing and I have yet to hear anyone convincingly explain why they exist at all as the differences seem to be of no evolutionary value whatsoever. And before anyone sees this an an opportunity to suggest that 'God did it' I would remind them that Noah and his family – according to the Bible - all shared the same physiology and skin pigmentation.
This was a brilliant program
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/100%25_English
they did dna tests on a bunch of right wingers and found quite a lot of "foreign genes"
Especially one woman who went balistic and tried to have the program banned after being told she had sub-saharan genes in her "very recent" familly tree.
Disappointintly Norman Tebbit turned out to be the most "racially pure" but Gary Bushell wasn't too pleased
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/100%25_English
they did dna tests on a bunch of right wingers and found quite a lot of "foreign genes"
Especially one woman who went balistic and tried to have the program banned after being told she had sub-saharan genes in her "very recent" familly tree.
Disappointintly Norman Tebbit turned out to be the most "racially pure" but Gary Bushell wasn't too pleased
you probably mean black gene rather than blood. although potenially there is a particular gene that partially controls skin colour, skin colour is determined by the amount of melanin you have. variations in skin colour are mainly genetic
people with more melanin are darker than those than those with less melanin are whiter. as humans evolved in africa it is thought that they were all originally dark skinned because dark skin helps to protect against sun and skin cancer.
as humans spread to other parts of the world,the dark skin was not as needed as much.so melanin became less important for survival.so in colder countries people developed lighter skin as they did not face the same pressure to protect themselves from sun.
so yes, if you go back far enough we probably all have dark skinned brown eyed ancestors and we are all related, although with the odd genetic mutation along the way (blue eyed blondes etc, like the recent baby born to black parents) we have all become somewhat difference, the real mystery perhaps is that of the chinese race.
people with more melanin are darker than those than those with less melanin are whiter. as humans evolved in africa it is thought that they were all originally dark skinned because dark skin helps to protect against sun and skin cancer.
as humans spread to other parts of the world,the dark skin was not as needed as much.so melanin became less important for survival.so in colder countries people developed lighter skin as they did not face the same pressure to protect themselves from sun.
so yes, if you go back far enough we probably all have dark skinned brown eyed ancestors and we are all related, although with the odd genetic mutation along the way (blue eyed blondes etc, like the recent baby born to black parents) we have all become somewhat difference, the real mystery perhaps is that of the chinese race.
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