[NP] Preference for fair skin, when did it begin ?

1. EDIT Another interesting comment mentioned about how one British Anthropologist when presenting the case for classifying martial races noted that In Southern and Eastern India which witnessed frequent death from hunger, it was the lighter skinned among the poor that were the first to go while the darker ones lingered to survive the famine. Climatic influences aside, I guess this gradually led to the extinction of fairer skinned poor Indians in those regions, where the only fair ones that survived where those in households which could afford/source food during famines.

2. Edit For a large part of agrarian history, from the end of Matriarchal religions to until Industrial revolution (female employment) and exceptions including the female ruling class (like empresses or those holding swayamwaras), WOMEN seldom had the choice to choose their partners proactively. Huge age gaps between a rich/powerful man and his wife were pretty common. The appearance or age of the male was insignificant compared to his wealth and power.

3. Edit Talking about the film industry, apart from the fact that parsis-punjabis-muslims dominated the then theatrics/film industry which looked to Victorian ideals of 'My fair lady', the justification given by dark character's were on the lines of 'fair skin is brighter on the screen and needs less lighting, showing away the facial characteristics more than darker skin' - a good prelude to making the good vs bad dialectic with visual differences. All villains apart from the main villain (whose face needs to be remembered and distinct) can be dark skinned.

From a species level, there was a study which showed that nocturnal beasts preferred animals on the darker shade and vice versa. Mating (and mating) preferences where theoretically highly linked to Wavelength range of eyesight of the species. This might explain why infant's who had no exposure to societies biases, prefer lighter toned toys, plastics etc. This biological preference is merely amplified along with social reinforcements as the child grows up. Studies also showed that even adults prefered lighter tones and a higher amount of people showed displeasure at darker tones (note general color nor skintone), this included subjects who were dark.

Or maybe there was preference towards the Average. Like studies about the Face averages show. How the most attractive face is likely to be the average among the famous faces. Displeasure towards Albino tones and extreme darkness. Everyone prefers something in between.

There was another research that showed that Olive skin provided the best tradeoff between Calcium synthesis vs. Burn potential. Explains the larger geographic domination and religious expansionism of middle eastern based societies. Yellow and Red skin tones signified youth and blood flow compared to paleness or darker tones which weren't readable.

Then there is the social narratives. Agrarian societies giving preference to lighter tones as it signified nobility among women. And Recent western preference for tan skin, which signified higher leisure time, health consciousness etc. Or the idea that what is scarce is more precious (Fair skin in India, Dark skin in the west)

Historical and power narratives - The Tropical and agrarian regions of the world have been colonized by assailants further away from the equator (typically non-agrarian until industrial revolution).

Indian society however stands out, there was active preference for dark deities like Shiva, Vishu, Draupadi, Rama, Krishna, Kali etc. But suddenly everything was reversed, possibly due to abrahamization (Abrahamic religions are absolutist in depicting dark as evil and light as good, possibly derived from Egyptian/other semitic depiction of darker Nubians/sub saharan africans as slaves/evil, son of ham).

Depiction of Ram as fair began in north India only recently. Major Hindu gods Ram, Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna are praised for being dark skinned. After the period of Harsh Vardhana, the higher classes lightened themselves, first where the pre-islamic central asians who after invading mingled with the upper classes, thereby setting the initial stages of lightening the upper classes (but this was limited to northwest), then were the courts in muslim invaders where preference where specifically given to fair skinned actors, the legacy continued with the British, the theatre scenario was dominated by fair skinned Indians - Parsis, Muslims, Punjabis who held Fair skinned indo european features as superior to the australasian influence. Additionally, with such social conditioning, more successful males artificially selected fairer women. The only post 1100 AD where dark women were celebrated was during the Maratha rule under Tarabai, who was described to be dark and capable.

Marathas in general were dark, although today, Shivaji is depicted as fairer/taller than a pathan (despite his dark sun tanned deccan peasant background) while Afzal khan, a pathan, is made to look like a south Indian (like asuras). Hailing from the Maratha community, preference for fair skin was unheard off among our great grandparents, it was all about boobs and ass in the written romantic epics EVEN during the British rule. But now everybody follows bollywood's ideals.

Want to know your thoughts.