High yellow

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High yellow is a term for a very light-skinned African-American sharing Caucasian ancestry. The term was in common use in the United States at the end of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century, and appears in many popular songs of the era, such as The Yellow Rose of Texas.

"High" derives from the fact that these individuals were so light skinned, they could often pass for white and were thought by some to be better than darker skinned African-Americans. Indeed, many high yellows are not obviously black, but may be thought to be black, Hispanic, Jewish, Middle Eastern, Southern European/Mediterranean, or other ancestries. Some now regard the term as an insult.

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