We’ve got an interesting commentary about using the term “Caucasian”, “Caucasian Muslims”:
“I think you are talking about White European Muslims. I am a descendant of Caucasian Muslims and those are not our issues. Caucasian is a fake umbrella term for white people. If you do not come from Dagestan, Chechnya, or that area, you are not Caucasian.
…Now that we know so much more about genetics, we know that umbrella term is horribly wrong and unnecessary. It misleads people to believe all whites are of the same group”.
Here is our answer:
For majority of Westerners, especially from the US, the term ‘Caucasian’ means ‘White European’, although some of them know what modern Caucasus is. So, the fact is it, whether we like it or not.
From genetics point, while it is obvious that native Europeans and Minor Asians are of ‘Caucasian race’, they comprise 2 different genetic pools. But, we must mention 2 points.
1) These two groups have rather short genetic distance between, while comparing with groups like Eastern Asians and Africans.
2) Many original northern Caucasians, especially Chechens and those from West Caucasus, have significant European genetic component. That is why many of them look like very Europeans and even Northern Europeans, like Scandinavians.
Actually the term “Caucasian” is used in the West (but not in eastern Europe, including post-socialistic countries area) more wide, than ‘genetically European’. This term also includes original Minor Asians (Caucasians, Turks, Persians, etc.) and some of original Central Asians (Tajiks, Pashtuns, etc.) owning light skin. In this approach we have ‘Caucasian’ = White.
As for original (genetically) Europeans, they belong to area which begins from the northern coast of Mediterranean Sea and northern than Caucasus. However, we need to mention, that in these regions the 2 mentioned groups are not distinctly separated – many southern Europeans have significant Minor Asian component and vice-versa.
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