Dictionary

melanoderm en · NOUN

Etymology

From melano- + -derm.

Meanings

1. A person with dark skin.
   • The Brazilian negroes—melanoderms—in general have 1 ᵐ,64 in height. The curve shows another point of density about 1 ᵐ,73. The cephalic index of our melanoderms was a surprise: 81, 84, brachycephalic. 1942, Edgard Roquete Pinto, “Contributions to the Anthropology of Brazil”, in Proceedings of the Eighth American Scientific Congress, volume II, Washington, D.C., page 243:
   • Dark-skinned peoples (melanoderms) are, as a rule, more resistant to this parasite than the fair-skinned peoples (leucoderms).[…]In the case of malaria, we have already noted the differentiation between the leucoderms and melanoderms. 1955, Impact of Science on Society, pages 146–147:
   • It is also admitted that these gradations in colour have a protective value; in the case of the melanoderms against the actinic rays of the sun and in that of the leucoderms against cold, since white is the best colour for keeping in the heat of the body. 1924, A[lfred] C[ort] Haddon, The Races of Man and Their Distribution, Cabridge: at the University Press, page 7:

Forms

Coordinates

leucoderm