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Why do some Pakistani people look like white people or really pale?

I've met many Pakistanis that are quite dark skinned and brown but I have also come across some that are really pale and lighter skin.I mean its supposed to be a hot country?

My guess is that since Pakistan used to be a British colony and that is why they are some White. So my guess is that all Pakistanis are mixed with White (British) and Indian to make up their race of being Pakistani?? Also, many Arabs and Persians migrated to Pakistan, it could be that.

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Reply 1
Avatar for Abbasmerali
Abbasmerali
Skin colour can vary drastically in a single generation. No single gene pool is homogeneous.
Some Pakistanis come from the kashmiri part of Pakistan, whom are often of very pale skin.
Reply 3
Avatar for Lizzie246
Lizzie246
2
you can get some white people who are born tanned as well, probably depends what area of Pakistan they/ their families are from

Some do look like white people tho, i think my flatmate is ethnically Pakistani, but sometimes i think he looks white but i don't want to ask him in case he is white and thinks i'm a complete moron
Well, given that it's the sixth most populous country in the world (170 million inhabitants) and the fact that there are a lot of different ethnic groups represented in the country (punjabs, pasthuns, balochis, sindhis, sairakis, hazaras, tajiks, baltis etc) it's not strange at all to see people with wide ranging skin tones.

Also, it's not a "hot country" per se, the northern areas see a lot of snowfall and cold winds.

3230699151_18b3b439cf_z-murree-main-best1.jpg
Picture of a northern city near Islamabad during the winter.
(edited 12 years ago)
Pakistan-Cold-Desert.jpg74.8KB
Why do some white people look brown? I'm Scottish and people think I'm Arab all the time. Variation within countries is normal.
Reply 6
Avatar for HumiT
HumiT
2
Pakistan is not entirely a hot country. It's geography is a mix of landscapes from deserts, forests, hills and plateaus and glaciated mountains in the north. The Kashmiri's and Pashtun's are known to be fair skinned. The Pashtuns especially are known for their white skin and blue/green eyes. Pakistan shares borders with Iran, China and Afghanistan and has been invaded by the Arabs and Persians so of course Pakistan will have some of their influence. The more you go into the colder regions of Pakistan the more you'll come across white skinned people.
Reply 7
Avatar for mel0n
mel0n
17
Nice try OP, lol. Even some people in the region of Kashmir are 'dark' skinned. Not sure about all Pashtuns but generally they are really light and those around the area of Gilgit, near the Chinese border are too.
I'm quite pale for a Pakistani, but its just my natural skin tone. I always get mistaken for Spanish or something. All of my family are pale though and we're not pashtun, or descended from them. I think it would be due to the fact some Pakistanis are Caucasian (as this refers to skin type and build) and that there is a huge range of mix within the country itself.
Original post by runtoyou
I've met many Pakistanis that are quite dark skinned and brown but I have also come across some that are really pale and lighter skin.I mean its supposed to be a hot country?

My guess is that since Pakistan used to be a British colony and that is why they are some White. So my guess is that all Pakistanis are mixed with White (British) and Indian to make up their race of being Pakistani?? Also, many Arabs and Persians migrated to Pakistan, it could be that.


"Many" Arabs and Persians did not migrate to Pakistan. Pakistan has very low frequencies of Arab/Semitic genes. Plus, most Arabs, and especially most Persians, are not "really pale", hence fair-skinned Pakistanis cannot the result of Persians/Arabs.

Your question over-all is proof of how ignorant you are.
(edited 11 years ago)
You might not know this, but Asia is far more ethnically diverse than 'inbred' Europe.
Original post by bumble_bee_zee
I'm quite pale for a Pakistani, but its just my natural skin tone. I always get mistaken for Spanish or something. All of my family are pale though and we're not pashtun, or descended from them. I think it would be due to the fact some Pakistanis are Caucasian (as this refers to skin type and build) and that there is a huge range of mix within the country itself.


The vast-majority of Pakistanis are classified as "Caucasian". Caucasian does not equate to being a white/European person.
Reply 12
Avatar for Mehmoodd
Mehmoodd
Our moms used to scrape our faces during our baths to make us white :sad:
Pakistan has several different ethnic groups and a full spectrum of climate conditions. People in different parts of the country look different, and sometimes there's a lot of variation even among families. In my family, men tend to be dark and women fair.
Original post by RamocitoMorales
You might not know this, but Asia is far more ethnically diverse than 'inbred' Europe.


I presume you're not including the people who marry their cousins?
Reply 15
Avatar for fbear
fbear
4
What everyone said. Pakistanis, like North Indians, are largely caucasians and some can be very European in appearance. West Asian influence is not that prominent, except in Punjabis, and Iranian influence can be hard to determine as they're closely linked to each other.
Reply 16
Avatar for shahlakh
shahlakh
13
well seriously speaking i have never seen a pakistani who is very dark skinned. all the pakistanis are fair ,a bit less or too fair but not dark. u will mostly find these dark skinned people in india. but among pakistanis it is very rare. even once in my class a new guy came he was dark skinned . all the pakistanis and even other students of other nationality said that he must be bangladeshi or indian but cant be pakistani. even once it happened that i mistook an arabian guy to be pakistani. so pakistanis r fair because if u see the map u will see that this country is located in the northern side i guess. and thats why these pakistanis r fair. yeah i agree that pakistan originated from india.but isnt it strange that still one can distinguish b/w pakistanis and indians. the reason behind this is that pakistanis are much inter bred with turks, greeks and they resemble more with afghans. in other words they r heanily inter bred which is not the case with Indians, Bangladeshi, Sri lankans etc. Thats why pakistani people r fair, some r less fair but not dark at all. seriously. and some r as fair as europeans. My friend told me that these extremely white pakistanis are pathans. pathans have colourful eyes, hair and as fair skin as europeans.
Reply 17
Avatar for shahlakh
shahlakh
13
so consequently i would say that pakistanis r more close to afghans than indians in looks. In other words they resemble very much afghans but very less with indians.
The Pashtuns, Baloch and Kashmiris in particular tend to be light skinned. Also many people from Northern Punjab. The only regions of Pakistan where skin colour is more than a crisp brown on average are the South of Punjab and interior Sindh. Some of my cousins on my mother's side are brunette haired and green/hazel eyed and friends have commented that they look very German in their appearance.

Pashtun policeman: http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2466/3575683271_b43f59a261.jpg

Punjabi actress: http://www.cidpusa.org/pak.jpg
Punjabi model: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_PQ1rqdGwKzQ/TTSMWjnTFqI/AAAAAAAADM4/gQLsiZSZWCw/s400/Iman+Ali.jpg

Punjabi Pathan cricketer and politician Imran Khan: http://img.xcitefun.net/users/2011/11/272877,xcitefun-imran-khan-pti-wallpaper-6.jpg

Cba with more but you get my drift.
Reply 19
Avatar for No Man
No Man
15

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