Answering a child’s question about why the Chinese have narrow eyes, one could easily brush aside: precisely because the earth is round, the grass is green, and the hare has long ears. Indeed, are differences between people really important? We are all different, so nature created us (or, if you want, God). But the human mind is trying to find logic in everything, and this is quite natural.
Perhaps the Chinese children attack their parents with equally intricate questions, wondering why the Europeans have too white skin, blue eyes or red hair. Let's try to explain the mysteries of genetics from the point of view of science, science fiction and folklore.
Epicanthus - a distinctive feature of the structure of the eye
There is a misconception that the size of the eyes of Asians is much smaller than that of the indigenous people of other continents. In fact, Koreans, Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese by this criterion are in no way inferior to the rest of humanity. The only difference is that their eyes are often located on the face with a slight slope, that is, the inner edge is slightly lower than the outer, and the upper eyelid is equipped with an epicantial fold that almost completely closes the lacrimal canal. In addition, Asians, unlike Europeans, have a dense fat layer under the skin of the eyelids, so it seems that the area around the eyes is somewhat swollen, and the incision resembles a thin crack.
Evolutionary processes
Scientists, answering the question of why the Chinese have narrow eyes, refer to changes in the structure of the visual organ during evolution. You probably know what race the Chinese belong to - most of the Asian nations are Mongoloid by race.
The harsh climate of the area, where this ethnic community arose 12, 000–13, 000 years ago, affected the physical characteristics of people. Nature made sure to protect the eyes from strong winds, sandstorms, and bright sunlight. People’s vision did not suffer from this at all, but the Japanese and Chinese are deprived of the need to squint, protecting their eyes from the effects of adverse natural factors.
By the way, not all Asian people like the structure of their eyes. According to statistics, over the past few years, more than 100, 000 Chinese have undergone surgery, trying to give the face European features. It is interesting that not only the fair sex, but also men fall under the knife. The very inhabitants of Europe, such transformations seem strange, because a narrow eye shape is a kind of "highlight" of the Chinese, this is what attracts attention.
Descendants of the Dragon
It is known that the Chinese themselves consider themselves children of the dragon - it is this mythical animal that is a symbol of the Celestial Empire. According to legend, one of the ancestors of the Chinese people was a young man named Yan-di - the son of an earthly woman and a heavenly dragon. According to ancient legends, at the dawn of civilization, Chinese girls more than once became the object of lust for fire, underground and flying dragons.
Of these marriages, of course, children were born. Unfortunately, we don’t know what real dragons looked like. But it can be assumed that it was their genetic code that left its mark on the appearance of the modern peoples inhabiting East Asia. Perhaps it is the kinship with dragons that explains why the Chinese have narrow eyes, short stature and yellow skin?
Descendants from other planets
Despite all the scientific achievements, an absolutely reliable version of the origin of mankind has not yet been developed. Someone believes in the divine creation of the world, someone closer to the Darwinian theory, which claims that our closest relatives are monkeys. The hypothesis that the diversity of terrestrial races and nationalities is due to the fact that the Earth is a refuge for people from other planets or galaxies also has the right to exist.
Assuming this to be true, one could understand the nature of many incomprehensible puzzles. Why do the Chinese have narrow eyes? Everything is simple - in that corner of the Universe where they came from, everyone has it. It is possible that at different times our land was visited by giants who built the pyramids in Egypt and placed stone idols on Easter Island. But how many unknown secrets our planet keeps! The narrow eyes of the Chinese in comparison with them seem a mere trifle.
