Where did the myth that ethnic French people look mostly Northern European come from?

[Hrvoje Vukčić Hrvatinić]

I imagine French as similar to Central Europeans but completely western looking. Certanly not nordic, but not that meddish either.

[barkoo]

I think France has a few fundamental aesthetic strands in its Tapestry

True, there is no such thing as French looking, the most part are made of several Europeans phenotypes than bind together. That said the main French component is Celto-Germano-Nordic mostly. Med types are clearly overrated and almost non existent in its pure form. OP has zero clue of what he's talking about. One day they DW's NI the other day French etc. classic shit on TA.

[Dna8]

These European meta ethnoses like French, German, Spanish etc cannot be distilled/simplified into French Look, German Look, Spanish Look etc..

[Tooting Carmen]

They don’t resemble North Italians in the slightest exept in Corsica and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (culturally and phenotypically there’s more overlapping). In the Northeast if anything they’re closer to Germans and in the Southwest they don’t resemble Italians either. If anything they resemble Basques. That the French resemble North Italians (whatever that means) is actually the myth. I’m not saying that the French are Germans too. They have their own look with slight regional variations.

France and Northern Italy are both full of Alpines, Dinarids, Atlantids, Meds and various combinations of all four.

[barkoo]

I don't think such a myth exists. In America and in popular culture in general there's a stereotype that the average Frenchman is a swarthy med-looking individual, no different from Spaniards, Italians and Greeks. People usually have this in mind when they imagine the French look:

This is not even the median Southern looking French. I can understand a caricature has to be made but this is still most of the time ridiculously inaccurate.

[barkoo]

France and Northern Italy are both full of Alpines, Dinarids, Atlantids, Meds and various combinations of all four.

No, Dinaro-Alpine-Borreby-Nordid-CM first then comes Atlantids and to a lesser extend a few Med in the mix. You don't live here, just don't spread lies out of your ass again.

[Rouxinol]

France and Northern Italy are both full of Alpines, Dinarids, Atlantids, Meds and various combinations of all four.

I've rarely seen there the types of Dinarids and Dinaro-Meds that are so frequent and widespread in Italy.
And in Italy I rarely see Atlantids.

[barkoo]

All things considered the most usual phenotype might be SubNordid, Alpines and then Atlantids group.

[Hrvoje Vukčić Hrvatinić]

North Italians from Piedmont posted here didn't look very French. I would say similarity between French and North Italians is overrated. Italians don't look fully western, but central, and some even bit easternish.

[barkoo]

I've rarely seen there the types of Dinarids and Dinaro-Meds that are so frequent and widespread in Italy.
And in Italy I rarely see Atlantids.

There's probably more Atlantids types in North Italy than anywhere throughout the whole Iberian peninsula. The only time you go in italy its meanwhile you're contemplating some of Sikeliot's dumb threads. Your opinion here is irrelevant whatsoever anyway.