Andalusians and Sicilians

[galvez]

Recently I was dismayed that a so-called Spaniard launched attacks on "dago" Southern Italians* and Slavs in another forum, claiming that Spaniards are fairer than Southern Italians and racially purer than Slavs. I just want to set the record straight on Andalusians and Sicilians, whom I believe have more in common with each other than with the vast majority of European groups.

From Coon's The Races of Europe -- Andalusians:

Another useful series is one of 420 adult males from Andalusia, representing the most brunet population of Spain, and the one which supposedly contains the most Arab and Berber blood. These Andalusians have a mean stature of 166.5 cm., approximately the same as that of the smaller Moroccan Berbers, the Kabyles, and the modern Egyptians.

[...]

The skin color of the Andalusians is light brown, corresponsing to #15 to #18 on the von Luschan chart, in 80 per cent of cases, while only one man in six has a pinkish-white skin of the type so frequent among Riffians. Sixty per cent have dark brown hair, 30 per cent black hair. The remaining 10 per cent show some evidence of blondism or rufosity (493).

Now Sicilians:

The skin color is as a rule dark; over 50 per cent of unexposed shades are definitely light-brown or olive-colored, while the exposed skin often tans to a distinctive reddish brown. Ten per cent are freckled. About 30 per cent have black hair, and 48 per cent dark brown; reddish brown shades, or dark to medium brown with a reddish glint, account for some 16 per cent, while the remaining 6 per cent have light brown or blondish colors. Pure dark eyes are found among 44 per cent of those studied; mixed eyes among 50 per cent, and pure light eyes among 6 per cent (557).


*I find the term "dago" most appropriate to the swarthy, dark-eyed, dark-haired, racially-mixed Nordicists who will never compare to their ideal. Arthur Kemp, whose eyes are much darker than most of my relatives', would definitely be a "dago" compared to most of my fair-skinned, light-eyed relatives.

[Graeme]

I think I am an expert on Italy. Spain not so much particularly Andalusia, more Catalonia. It is obvious to me that those denigrators of Sicilian Italians in particular have never been to Sicily or even mainland Italy. The idea that Sicilians are some negro/North African/whatever combination and that they are very dark skinned is not supported by observation or spending time there. I suppose the dark ones all when to the USA en masse. I don't really care what Coon observed or was told >70 years ago when Sicilians were indeed short of stature but things are very different today. Italians from other regions of Italy and other Europeans live in Sicily today and the native Sicilians are not the Arabs or Africans often described as such formerly by other Italians or foreigners. Anyway I like dark eyes and dark hair. And I think Sicily is a great place to live particually Siracusa.

[galvez]

Graeme said:

I think I am an expert on Italy. Spain not so much particularly Andalusia, more Catalonia. It is obvious to me that those denigrators of Sicilian Italians in particular have never been to Sicily or even mainland Italy.

I agree 100%. Usually when people bash a European group they are not really familiar with that group. Again, I find it insulting that dark-haired, dark-eyed Nordicists are trashing Meds when in fact blondism is more prevalent in my family than theirs.

I don't despise Nordicists who are actually Nordic. I despise the wannabe Nordics who adhere to McCulloch's all-inclusive ideology: those who fail to meet the standards.

Even though I am dark-haired and relatively pigmented, I bet I am more likely to produce a Nordic because it runs so strong on my maternal side than most "Nordicists."