Various Kinds of Skin Color – Talking about human skin color, of course, remember about race. The problem that still often occurs in this world is the act of racism which can interfere with the freedom of life of a person or a group. This of course raises our curiosity, how many races are there in this world? And how many types of human skin color are there in the world? Sinaumed’s, on this occasion we will review the various colors of human skin. Come on, let’s just look at the following reviews.
The Human Race in the World
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word “race”? The word race comes from Western culture, to be precise the French-Italian razza which means there are differences in various types of population based on physical appearance. The indicators in racial division include skin color, eye color, hair shape and color, body shape, and eye shape.
Other meanings of race refer to the temperament or physical appearance or attitude of a group, which often describes the population of a particular geography. Not only that, race is also often associated with clan, family, and lineage in a group. The definition of human race that is closest to the truth is the classification of humans based on biological characteristics, not sociocultural.
Various Races
Based on the skin color of Alfred Louis Kroeber, an anthropologist from the United States, humans are divided into three major racial groups and several special races. Below we will outline the various races according to the classification made by Kroeber.
1. The Mongoloid race
This type of human race generally has the physical characteristics of yellow skin. Although the assumption of yellow skin color is not true, but the majority. For example, Southeast Asians tend to have light brown and dark brown skin. The Mongoloid race is mostly spread in East Asia, Southeast Asia, Madagascar, some parts of North Europe, North America, South America, Northeast India, and Oceania.
The Mongoloid race is further grouped into three racial groups. First, Asiatic Mongoloid which includes Central Asia, East Asia, and North Asia). The second, Malayan Mongoloid, includes Indonesia, the indigenous people of Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. Third, the American Mongoloid who are native to the Americas.
2. Negroid race
The Negroid race is a human race whose general characteristics are their black skin and curly hair. The Negroid race is spread all over the world, but mainly they inhabit the African continent which is south of the Sahara desert. They have many ancestry spread across North America, South America, the Middle East and Europe.
The Negroid race is divided into three more groups. First, African Negroids who are native Africans. Second, the Negritos who are spread across the Malay Peninsula which are also commonly known by the Semang people in the Philippines.
Third, Melanesians. The term Melanesia in Greek means black island. This naming is because the majority of the inhabitants of these islands are people who have black skin. Melanesia are areas in East Nusa Tenggara, Irian who live in the area of Irian Jaya or Papua, Timor Leste, Vanuatu, French Polynesia, Fiji and Solomon.
3. Caucasian Race
The main characteristic of the Caucasian race is that they generally have white skin. Most of this race settled in North Africa, North India, Pakistan, the Middle East and Europe. They have many ancestry and are distributed in North America and Australia. Not only that, they are also scattered in parts of South Africa, South America, and New Zealand.
Even though the majority of this race has white skin, not all people of the Caucasian race have white skin. Somalis and Ethiopians can be examples in this regard. Even though their physical characteristics are like Negroids, namely curly hair and black skin, their skulls are more similar to the Caucasian race so they are included in the Caucasian race group.
The Caucasian race is divided into four more groups. First, Nordic which is in Northern Europe for the area around the Baltic Sea. Second, Alpine for Central Europe and Eastern Europe. Third, the Mediterranean which includes North Africa, the Mediterranean, Arabia, Armenia and Iran. And the fourth, Indic which includes India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
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4. Special Races
Apart from the three big races above, in the world there are still some special races that are not too big but cannot be included in the other three races. This is certainly the source of the uniqueness of these special races. It is noted that there are four other special races that we need to recognize.
First, the Bushman race who are residents of the Kalahari Desert area in South Africa. Second, the Veddoid race that inhabits the interior of Sri Lanka. Third, the Polynesian race that inhabits the Islands of Micronesia and Polynesia. Fourth, the Ainu race in the Karafuto and Hokkaido Islands in Japan.
Why is Human Skin Color Different?
After getting to know various kinds of races in the world that have different skin colors, now we enter into a discussion of why human skin color. What do you think, Sinaumed’s? Anyone knows?
Correct. There are various factors that cause different human skin colors. First, because of differences in the amount of melanin produced. People who have less melanin tend to have white skin, while people with lots of melanin tend to have black skin.
Second, the environment. Environmental conditions that are slightly exposed to light exposure tend to have light-colored skin. Third, genetic factors. For the third factor, this is a factor that has quite a big influence and even influences the first factor, namely the amount of melanin production. The role of racial factors is also involved in genetic factors.
Various Human Skin Colors
Although skin color based on race is divided into three major groups and added to several small groups, human skin color is much more than that. For example, for white skin color, there are pale white skin colors and some are reddish white. Of course these two types of skin color have different skin tones .
About forty years ago, a dermatologist or dermatologist in the United States named Thomas Bernard Fitzpatrick conducted research and succeeded in creating a human skin color scale. The skin color scale is known as the Fitzpatrick Scale.
Because of the results of these studies, Fitzpatrick was dubbed the father of modern dermatology . He concluded that there are fundamental differences in each human skin due to burning. Then, the research he conducted developed and the idea was widely used by scientists as a general standard and further research.
Broadly speaking, human skin tones are divided into six types. Do you think Sinaumed’s knows what your skin type is? If you don’t know, let’s review together the various colors of human skin below.
1. Group I for Pale White Skin Color
This pale white or ivory skin color group is often classified for the skin color of people of the Caucasian race. Caucasian people on average have a pale white skin color.
Other accompanying physical characteristics are generally, they have red or light blonde hair. Their eye color can vary between light blue, light green, and light gray. Pale white skin color is generally owned by the natives of Europe and Northeast Asia.
On their faces, freckles or freckles can be found. Fitzpatrick revealed that these spots are formed due to exposure to sunlight that stings the skin. They, people with pale white skin, have the skin pigment melanin, a type of pheomelanin.
Unfortunately, this type of pigment cannot protect the skin from exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays. This condition stimulates their bodies to produce more melanin than usual so that the spots appear.
People with pale white skin have a skin condition that is super sensitive to sunlight. Their skin will always look burnt when exposed to sunlight. However, their skin color will not turn brown even if sunburn hits their skin.
2. Group II for white skin
People with white skin can be seen in Europeans in general and North Africa such as Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, and so on. Physical characteristics apart from skin are having blue, green, and gray eye colors. Their natural hair is blonde.
Just like skin type I, this type of skin produces pheomelanin type melanin which cannot protect the skin from exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays. They have a higher risk of developing skin cancer than people with other skin types.
People with fair skin color have skin that burns easily and is difficult to tan when exposed to sunlight. However, this white skin color can still be brown even though it is very difficult.
3. Group III for Light Brown Skin Color
This light brown skin color has a color close to beige , which is a very light brown. Their hair color is usually dark blonde or light brown. Their eye color is red-brown or light brown. Sinaumed’s can find this skin color in Asian people in general.
In many medical explanations, this type of skin has a high enough risk of developing skin cancer when exposed to ultraviolet light, just like pale white skin color and white skin color. If exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet rays, this type of skin can turn dark brown, mottled, or burn.
4. Group IV for Brown Skin Color
This skin type can be named with a medium brown or medium brown skin color . Many people with brown skin have dark brown eyes and dark hair. Sinaumed’s will mostly encounter people with this skin type in people in parts of the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Greece, and Malta), the Middle East, South Asia, and some in Southeast Asia.
This group has more melanin than groups I, II, and III. So that skin group IV is relatively safer from the risk of skin cancer due to sun exposure. When exposed to the sun’s UV rays, this type of skin color can change to a darker brown. However, the effect of the presence of spots and burns does not occur.
5. Group V for Dark Brown Skin Color
Dark brown skin tones have more melanin than brown skin tones. As a result, the resistance of this type of skin to sun exposure is better because it can adapt very well. Groups that have dark brown skin color can also be called dark brown.
Not only that, due to the large amount of melanin in dark brown skin tones, type V skin has better protection against aging. Because it is protected from aging, the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines can be minimized. The darker a person’s skin, it is said that the more youthful they look compared to those with pale white skin.
Physical characteristics other than skin color of people who have skin type V are dark brown eyes and dark brown or black hair. If the skin is exposed to UV rays from the sun, their skin easily turns darker in color. However, this type of skin rarely burns or spots appear. You can find these traits in many Africans and Hispanics.
6. Group VI for very dark brown skin color to black
The last skin color group mentioned by Fitzpatrick in his theory of skin color scale is very dark brown . Yes, you are right Sinaumed’s. This very dark brown skin color group has a very large amount of melanin and causes the skin color to turn brown to black.
The average person has brown eyes and black hair. Many people who have very dark brown skin inhabit the African Continent and the Aborigines (indigenous inhabitants of the Australian Continent).
Skin that is this type is the safest skin from the risk of skin cancer. Even though it is exposed to UV rays from the sun, this type of skin has the best adaptability compared to other skin types. If exposed to UV rays from the sun, very dark brown skin does not appear freckles, never burns, but always turns dark.
For those of you who are still curious about how to take care of your skin based on your skin type, you can read our selection of books.
Skin Care Tips
Because each skin color type has a different amount of melanin pigment, adaptability under UV exposure to sunlight, and different characteristics, each skin color type has a different treatment method. For skin types I to III, you have skin that has a high risk of burning, melanoma, skin cancer, and aging due to exposure to the sun’s UV rays.
Therefore, dermatologists or skin doctors recommend that you do the following tips:
- Use a sunscreen that has a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30.
- Limit your skin from exposure to the sun’s UV rays by finding a shady spot whenever you are in a place that is hot in the sun.
- Wear a hat that can protect your head and face from sun exposure.
- Wear UV-resistant glasses to block out the sun.
- If you plan to be out in the sun for a long time, make sure you wear protective clothing that has an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 30 or more.
- Regularly check your skin from head to toe every month.
- Don’t forget to consult a dermatologist.
Meanwhile, for those of you who have skin tones of types IV to VI, the tips given are basically almost the same as those given to skin tones of types I to III. It’s just that the protective clothing used is not required to have a UPF of 30. And you can simply use a sunscreen that has a minimum SPF of 15 if you are out in the sun.
Sinaumed’s, our review of the types of human skin color has come to an end. We’re sure there’s still a lot of talk about skin color and skin care. Therefore, sinaumedia is your #best friend without limits to dig deeper into knowledge and knowledge with our selected books.
Author: Nanda Iriawan Ramadhan