Melanchroes and other terms
melanchroes=black skinned
phrenychroes=brown or red skinned
leucochroes=leucochroes fair or white skinned
The Greeks saw the Egyptians a black skinned and the most common word [not always]used to describe the Egyptians ‘color was melanchroes, black skinned.
If the Greeks wanted to describe them as white they would have used leucochroes but they did not. Neither did they say phrenychroes, which is brown or red skinned.
The very use of the word melanchroes from the same root for words such as melanin, melanite, Melanesia, and so forth meant that there was no confusion or complex in the mind of the either Herodotus, or Aristotle on this subject.
Aristtotle says in Physiognomonica that the ‘Egyptians and Ethiopians are very black.’
This passage is translated in the Loeb as ”too black” indicating that Aristotle saw the Ethiopians, Greek for burnt faces, and the Egyptians as black skinned people. He did not say the Ethiopians are “too black” but rather that both of them were very black.
Things one should take into account....
Egyptians skin tones were not homogeneous, they were many different shades.
Moreover, one should take into account what region the Primary Source is describing, and what time period is also being described.
[more to come soon]
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