"MENA"

[leonj]

Some people on anthrofora use this term as a "race". You would think that "MENA people" originated in somewhere in either West Asia or North Africa and then spread all over the region. But no. "MENA" stands for Middle East and North Africa. In other words, it is a just a region.

[leonj]

I could not decide which section should I put this thread but if it is in a wrong section can moderators please move the thread to the correct section?

[itilvolga]

MENA is just a regional term as much as Mediterranean. MENA people can be Semitic (Arabs, Jews) Iranic (Persian, Baloch) Turkic (Turkmen, Iranian Azerbaijani) etc. That’s why we can’t consider all of them as same race.

[Nazarene]

Just a region ofc, but I think we've got similar cultural values

[Nassbean]

I agree with you but seriously i think mena people look alike even if there are some variations a bit like europeans who are easily recognizable or east asians

[leonj]

I agree with you but seriously i think mena people look alike even if there are some variations a bit like europeans who are easily recognizable or east asians

Actually I don't think Moroccans and Lebanese look alike.

[Nassbean]

Actually I don't think Moroccans and Lebanese look alike.

in general a moroccan guy will more look like someone from the middle east than someone from europe or sub-saharan africa but i agree that if we look closer we can see some differences

[leonj]

in general a moroccan guy will more look like someone from the middle east than someone from europe or sub-saharan africa but i agree that if we look closer we can see some differences

One of the former TA members who live Germany told me this: Since there is a lot of migrantion from North Africa to Europe in last few decades, Europeans began to mistake those North Africans for being West Asians. In Germany, those North Africans are thought to be Turks. However, as a results of this, Turks are began to be mistaken for being Southern European or Balkan.

The former TA member told that he is Kurdish but he is being mistaken for being either Balkan or Italian. Also, whenever I am abroad, almost all people mistake me for being Spanish. I guess, the reason for that is they think North Africans as West Asians (mostly Turks) and therefore they mistake Turks, Kurds, Lebanese as either Balkan or Southern European.

[Nassbean]

One of the former TA members who live Germany told me this: Since there is a lot of migrantion from North Africa to Europe in last few decades, Europeans began to mistake those North Africans for being West Asians. In Germany, those North Africans are thought to be Turks. However, as a results of this, Turks are began to be mistaken for being Southern European or Balkan.

The former TA member told that he is Kurdish but he is being mistaken for being either Balkan or Italian. Also, whenever I am abroad, almost all people mistake me for being Spanish. I guess, the reason for that is they think North Africans as West Asians (mostly Turks) and therefore they mistake Turks, Kurds, Lebanese as either Balkan or Southern European.

yes my mother too is mistaken for being iberian and for me they think i'm mexican or turk but it doesn't matter because it's all about proportion. I agree that there is some mena people who can be mistaken for being south europeans or from somewhere else but in general it's not the case you shouldn't take the ignorance of some germans as something really reliable

[lameduck]

I agree with you but seriously i think mena people look alike even if there are some variations a bit like europeans who are easily recognizable or east asians

yeah i agree with this , also people in MENA region look more alike than they look like people outside of them , an Iranian look way more like a Moroccan then to a Pakistani , similarly a Morroccon look more like a Lebanese than to a Spanish. In addition to this MENA people share many cultural similarities as well, there is a cultural continuum from morocco to Iran , which breaks at iran.