Caucasian
The origin and history of Caucasian.
Etymology
From Caucasus, the mountain range, + -ian. The racial-classification sense was popularized in the 1790s by the German scientist Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, who mistakenly believed the first humans originated there — the theory itself is no longer considered scientifically valid.
Class of 1790
Caucasian first entered the language around 1790. Other words from the same year:
See the full Class of 1790 →