Talk:Melungeon

Note: Please start new discussions at the bottom of the page (not the top). If you want to start a back-and-forth discussion PLEASE create an account so you can include the date and time of your posting - otherwise these get so confused that nobody knows what is new and what is old, and who is responding to what. - DavidWBrooks 01:39, 23 September 2005 (UTC)

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Discussion archive

• Archive 1 (5 September 2003 - 16 September 2006)

Box

Added box with photo, comparable to the Cajun or Breton people articles. Badagnani 19:04, 16 September 2006 (UTC)

Who are the people in the photo, and what is their claim to Melungeon-ness? Did they self-ID as Melungeons? I strongly doubt that. Why not just put up a photo from one of the "Unions" meetings? At least those folks do self-ID.Verklempt 21:40, 17 September 2006 (UTC)

No response yet to this request for substantiation. I say the photo comes out, given the lack of verifiable provenance.Verklempt 20:59, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

Well, the information is contained in the photo page itself, if you click through to it. I was thorough in my documentation: Arch Goins and family, Melungeons from Graysville, Tennessee. Archival family photograph from the 1920s, provided to http://www.geocities.com/melungeonorigin/maomg2.html by Barbara Goins. Badagnani 21:08, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

I'm sure the people in that photo would be insulted to be called Melungeons. With no evidence that they self-IDed as Melungeon, it is the worst kind of revisionist history to label them as such retroactively.Verklempt 02:08, 20 September 2006 (UTC)

The previous argument against including any kind of photo in this article (in earlier discussion, maybe before you began editing here) was that we should not include photos of living persons because some editors believed that would be in bad taste. The suggestion was to find photos of people who are no longer living. What's happened, though (as you know), is that the same families of people who may have tried to hide their identities (as best they could in light of their physical appearance) have reclaimed and celebrated their heritage, one could say retroactively. I hope you won't argue that we shouldn't include a photo of living Melungeons or a photo of deceased Melungeons, for the same reason that it's something to be ashamed of. Because for many people today that isn't the case any more; in fact, that photo would not have been shared if Arch's descendant hadn't been interested in telling her family's story. You and I and some of the other editors may have traveled down to the mountains and seen what Melungeons look like, but most of our readers have not, and the photo is very helpful. If you can find a superior photo, that would be good, but for now this one should work to give people an idea of their appearance (as described in the article). Badagnani 03:23, 20 September 2006 (UTC)

Wise surname

Wise is a surname, in fact the surname of the person for whom the county is named. But I don't think he was actually from Wise County. Can the person adding the surname to the article explain where this information comes from? Badagnani 06:04, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

Etymology

Mul(atto) + Injun = Mulungeon ? -THB 07:30, 26 September 2006 (UTC)

The most widely accepted and best-supported etymological origins for "Melungeon" are the old English "Malingerer," meaning 'loafer', the French "Melangean," meaning 'mixed', "Malungo," an Afro-Portuguese term for 'comrade,' and "Melangeana," Italian for 'eggplant' which is in application slang for "black."

Chestney?

Chestney needs to come out. It is certainly not one of the most common core names. In fact, I have never heard of it before at all.Verklempt 00:26, 20 November 2006 (UTC)