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==A master race?==

==A master race?==

An Aryan master race theory was developed by French author [[Joseph Arthur de Gobineau]] in the 19th century. In ''The Myth of the Twentieth Century'' (1930), Nazi theorist Alfred Rosenberg developed a racial "ladder" with blacks and Jews at the bottom and Nordics at the top. In modern use, the word Aryan commonly refers to Nordic people, especially those with blonde hair and blue-eyes.

The "master race" theory was developed by French author [[Joseph Arthur de Gobineau]] in ''Essay on the Inequality of the Human Races'' (1853–1855). Gobineau argued that the Aryan race was the basis of European aristocracy and that the race mixing led to the "downfall of civilizations".

Due to the association with Nazi ideology, the word Aryan has slipped into disfavor. The term Aryan has also been used by [[Adolf Hitler]] and numerous other [[racialism|racialists]] to refer to what they believe to be the superior race of white, Nordic Europeans.

 

In modern popular usage, those with blonde hair and blue-eyes are sometimes described as Aryan. Due to the association with Nazi ideology, the word has slipped into disfavor.

==References==

==References==