ABSTRACT
The concept of race is associated most frequently with European colonialism and has been used to justify social hierarchies by rooting them in things deemed to be “natural”. The concept has divided humans into a hierarchy of kinds of people, based on perceptions of physical appearance, inherited essences, and behaviour, all seen as shaped by the natural environment. The balance between the three components has varied over time and this chapter traces these variations, and their perceived relationship to the environment, from the ancient world through to modern times, arguing that race is always a natural-cultural construct.
