Down syndrome
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
(Redirected from Down Syndrome)
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
Condition caused by a chromosomal deficiency, whereby the patients bear a certain resemblance to the Mongoloid race, such as a small head and tilted eyelids.
[edit]
Etymological notes
Since people with Down syndrome may have epicanthic folds, the condition was formerly called "Mongol" or "Mongoloid Idiocy" Mistakenly, John Langdon Down, for whom the syndrome was named, claimed in his book Observations on the Ethnic Classification of Idiots (1866), that the Mongol-like features represented an alleged evolutionary degeneration when manifested in Caucasoids. Though this view was discounted in the 20th century, the use of the term "Mongoloid" for racial purposes has acquired offensive connotations because of the connection with Down syndrome.
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Down syndrome" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
