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:
“‘twas by making sweetbreads do
I passed with such a high I.Q.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)
“Have you not a moist eye, a dry hand, a yellow cheek, a white
beard, a decreasing leg, an increasing belly? Is not your
voice broken, your wind short, your chin double, your wit
single, and every part about you blasted with antiquity? and
will you yet call yourself young?”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)