Race

A system that divides people into a limited number of, what were originally geographically defined, groups based on supposedly inherent biological differences, deriving from physical features (e.g. skin color) that are passed down from generation to generation. In order to emphasize the social construction of such categories the German word ‘Rasse’ has been replaced by the English ‘race,’ since in the German-speaking context ‘Rasse’ is often only referred to in its use by the Nazi regime and its scientifically untenable biological construction.