Although blonde hair has traditionally been considered a Caucasian trait, in Australia, some black people are actually born with the golden locks that many American women attain via a bottle. The golden strands of hair framing the dark skin of the face is truly a wonderful sight: These locks are reminiscent of sunbeams falling from the sky.
The People of the Islands of Melanesia
Melanesia consists of several islands that rest within a sub region of Oceania. Melanesia islands include: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. One theory stated that salt-water whitening, sun exposure, excess fish consumption, American or European heritage were responsible for the light hair color. However, a study conducted by Sean Myles
The hair of the scalp is longer and more flexible, while the hair of the eyebrows tends to be short and stiff. Oval shaped hair shafts produce wavy hair, flat hair shafts create curly hair and hair shafts that are perfectly round create straight hair. There are also different types of melanin, a natural compound responsible for the production of color in the eyes, skin and hair. There is yellow, brown and black melanin, each produced by melanocytes located at the follicle base. With age, melanin production decreases, causing greying of hair. (Applegate & Saunders, 2001, pp
Ania Loomba displays how “women’s struggles for equality continue after formal independence and define the nature of postcoloniality” (Loomba 188). Loomba indicates that the nature of postcoloniality is that women are “cast as mothers or wives and are called upon to literally and figuratively reproduce the nation” (Loomba 180). This is shown in the novels, Xala by Ousmane Sembene and the autobiographical I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala by Elizabeth Burgos-Debray. Both characters are expected to be mothers and wives, it is expected that the character in Xala; Rama will marry and have children, however, she resists the representation of her mother, who is in a polygamous marriage. In I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala;
Hair Care is another popular africanism present in America for African americans. For african american woman going for a natural hairstyle is quite common. Dating back to pre-colonial africa a natural afro hair style defined status and identity. Different styles indicated certain qualitie...
I’ve often heard that “humans came from monkeys,” or something similar. It is true that humans’ ancestors were primates, who first resided in warm and sunny Africa; they had similar features to today’s apes, such as a hairy body. The purpose of the vast amount of hair was to protect the body from the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays and to prevent overheating, mainly by acting as a barrier for the skin underneath the hair (Jablonski, 598). Some parts of the body such as palms were not covered with hair, but with sweat glands. Sweat glands allowed the body to cool off via evaporation at the surface of the skin; sweat glands were more efficient at thermoregulation. Overtime, early humans with a high amount of sweat glands were selected for since they had the best method at the time to keep themselves cool in warm environments (Kirchweger). This meant that overtime, humans lost most of their hair on their bodies, leaving their skin exposed. Sweat glands were going to help the body to cool down, but they couldn’t protect the skin from harmful UV rays. This is where melanin worked its magic, and it’s the reason for the diversity in skin color today.
There have been musicals, documentaries, researches, panel discussions and even talk shows about hair, hair qualities and hairstyles, even Oprah Gail Winfrey chose hair for the magazine's September 2013 theme. According to Adlman (2013), Oprah Winfrey in a video interview said, Women, we have issues with our hair, [Black women's] hair represents the first thing anyone sees of them, or of ourselves, and so we identify with what our hair looks like. The History of Black Hair: Hair Story by Ayana Byrd and Lori Tharps (2002) is an entertaining, concise survey that follows a mostly sequential path which begins in Africa and ends in America. It details the roots of black hair care in America, from centuries ago to the modern day, outlining how much hair truly signifies much of African culture. “Ever since African civilisations bloomed, hairstyles have been used to indicate a person’s marital status, age, religion, ethnic identity, wealth and rank within the community” (2002:3)
“Where do you get your hair color?” This has been an almost everyday question from my entire life. In a family with both parents being brunettes, I am a redhead. How does that work? No, I was not switched at birth. Which, often enough, I am actually asked. Red hair is gene that has passed down from my father’s side of the family. Luckily for me my hair makes my identity different from a lot of people, besides the other 2% of the redhead population.
A study of Melanesians found that the darker skinned inhabitants possessed large, singly dispersed melanosomes, whereas the lighter skinned inhabitants had smaller melanosomes bound in complexes . This infers that the large single state melanosome is directly related to dark skin. The size of these melanosomes are not specific to "race". For example, Africans with light skin contain the smaller ...
“Nuh ebery thing dat ave sugar sweet” is a jamaican proverb which means not everything which has sugar is sweet or, don’t be tricked by an appearance. Jamaica definitely won’t fool you. Jamaica to tourists, is like a paradise. In the end, every place is unique in its own way and Jamaica is no exception. In this essay you will read about the following topics: Jamaica’s Geography, Jamaica’s History, The Lifestyle of Jamaicans, The Different Jamaican Cuisines , Music of Jamaica, and finally The Festivals of Jamaica.
Madagascar is extremely different place from what I am used to in California. The people of Madagascar, called Madagascans live their lives in very unique ways. Their government, ecosystem, landforms, history, economy, culture, and everyday life are dissimilar to ours, while their climate is actually somewhat similar.
Klensch, E. (1996, December 26). Hair in many hues -- trend will continue into '97. Retrieved March 17, 2004 from http://www.cnn.com/STYLE/9612/26/hair/index.html
As mentioned above the graying (loss of hair coloring ) is produced by the reduction of melanin. But this reduction is due to several factors such as :
natural regions. A narrow and fertile marshy plain along the Atlantic coast where most of the
Guyana or Guiana, is a small coastal country on the northern end of South America. Like many other South America nations it was formally a European colony that employed the use of indentured servants and slaves. Despite having Spanish and Portuguese neighbors, it does not share this Hispanic culture with it. Guyana is considered by many as a West Indian or Caribbean nation. It is the only country in South America to have English as its national language. Two major points in Guyana’s history are the arrival of Africans and East Indians in Guyana and its establishment of political parties. Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese are the two largest ethnic groups in Guyana. Both entering the country as a laboring class. However, in modern Guyana violence
As someone who isn’t from the Continental United States originally, I imagined the differentiation of context regarding cultural perspectives and values would be very existent in correlation to what I had known as a Virgin Islands native. The culture and lifestyle of the Caribbean influenced the set of values I maintain, as during my raising they were the only ones implemented by my parents and supported by my environment.
Fiji is a small island located on the Pacific Ocean east of Australia. The country is home to almost 900,000 people. While many would say the Fijians have come a long way from their roots and are adopting tendencies of the western culture every day, there is no doubt they still hang onto core values and beliefs. The organization of a village and family is very traditional and who and how to respect is learned at a young age. Respect is not just displayed at home but in the professional work place. Learning about common business practices and etiquette in Fiji may be critical to a positive business relationship. Along the lines of communicating effectively in the business world, we can learn a lot about communications norms in