High yellow, occasionally simply yellow (dialect: yaller, yeller), is a (sometimes derogatory) term for persons classified as black who also have a high proportion of white ancestry. It is a reference to the golden yellow skin tone of some mixed-race people. 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. It is reflected in such popular songs of the era as "The Yellow Rose of Texas".
Read more about High Yellow: Etymology, Skin Color, Use As Social Class Distinction, Applied To Individuals, Art and Popular Culture
Famous quotes containing the words high and/or yellow:
“For thou, O Spring! canst renovate
All that high God did first create.
Be still his arm and architect,
Rebuild the ruin, mend defect.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“For in this yellow grave of sand and sea
A calling for colour calls with the wind
That’s grave and gay as grave and sea
Sleeping on either hand.”
—Dylan Thomas (1914–1953)