Eurasian (mixed ancestry)

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In English vernacular, Eurasian is a term that refers to those of mixed European and Asian heritage (by ancestry —increasingly by mixed parentage as a fact of modern transculturation). The word was originally used during 19th century British rule over India to refer to a person born of a British father and an Indian mother. Nowadays, the term usually refers to people of European caucasoid and Asian mongoloid descent. More precise descriptions may include Nordic/Baltic/Slavic/Celtic/Latin European (etc.) linkages with people of Chinese/Indian/Afghan/Turkic/Mongolian (etc.) heritage. Known in popular culture by the Hawaiian term hapa (meaning "half"), people with mixed Asian and European origins have become synonymous with exotic glamour.

In the period of Portuguese, British, French, and Dutch colonialism in Asia, many Eurasians became clerks or supervisors in business or government. Eurasians tended to marry Eurasians, particularly in India where their numbers increased to over 400,000. They became a separate social and economic stratum between the ruling whites and the dark-skinned local populations. "Eurasian" became a derogatory term in India, and "Anglo-Indian" was substituted. When colonialism ended, many Eurasians suffered because they were distrusted as alien and closely allied with the displaced colonial rulers.

1 Names
2 See also
- 2.1 Lists
3 External links

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Names

Most Eurasians in Southeast and South Asia carry European surnames, and as expected, the posession of such surnames typically indicates European descent. Most common ancestry of Eurasians is British for those in South Asia; Portuguese for those in Malaysia, Macau, East Timor, and Goa; Dutch for those in Indonesia and French for those in Vietnam. The majority are Christians.

The oldest Eurasian community in the region is in Malacca, in Malaysia; it began when the town was a Portuguese settlement, and many of its residents later moved to Singapore. There were also numerous Eurasians in the Netherlands East Indies, but following Indonesian independence most emigrated to the Netherlands, where there is an annual Eurasian festival called Pasar Malam Besar (literally 'big evening market' in Indonesian), the largest of its kind in the world. East Timor, also in Southeast Asia, has a significant and active Eurasian minority.

In the Philippines, Eurasians are called mestizos, and they make up a tiny minority of the population. A recent genetic study suggests that 3.5% of all Filipinos have at least some European ancestry, most likely Spanish. While the majority of the mestizo minority in the Philippines posess Spanish surnames, those same surnames are also the most common among the majority unmixed population. As such, in the vast majority of cases, posessing a Spanish surname in the Philippines does not indicate Spanish descent. See also: Catálogo Alfabético de Apellidos

In India, the term Anglo-Indian is used and often preferred rather than Eurasian, although this may not only also apply to people with British ancestry, but also Portuguese or Dutch. While ostracised by many Indians during the British Raj, Anglo-Indians enjoy the same rights as other Indian citizens, and there are still seats reserved in parliament for them. Many have emigrated to the UK or Australia. In the U.K., well-known Anglo-Indians include singers Cliff Richard and Engelbert Humperdinck, though the latter later moved to the United States, while TV personality Melanie Sykes has an Anglo-Indian and Anglo-Burmese mother. UK Actress Kate Beckinsale also has some Anglo-Burmese ancestry.

Burma (prior to independence) had a large and generally prosperous Eurasian community known as the Anglo-Burmese. They tended to dominate various sectors of colonial and post-independence society in Burma. In following years, many emigrated from Burma or assimilated into Bamar (Burman) society. Today, many Anglo-Burmese live in English-speaking countries (e.g. U.K., Australia, and U.S.A.). Some also moved to India where they have integrated into the Anglo-Indian community.

Eurasian may also refer to a proposed genetic supercluster which comprises both Caucasoids and Mongoloids.

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