Editorial Policy

Data Sources

The phenotype catalogue is compiled from publicly available anthropology references and rewritten in plain English. The primary source for phenotype descriptions and composite faces is Human Phenotypes, a long-running public reference that documents recurring sets of physical traits across populations. Country average faces are synthesized from composite face projects hosted on Wikipedia and related public archives, which themselves aggregate published composite-face studies.

For East Asian population history in particular, we cross-reference peer-reviewed genetics research, including work from the Fudan University Jin Li group on the demographic history of Han Chinese and neighboring populations. For ethnographic detail on China's recognized ethnic groups, we reference the national ethnic compendia published by China's State Ethnic Affairs Commission. Where a phenotype's region or trait description depends on a single source, we flag that uncertainty in the entry rather than presenting it as established fact.

Review Process

Every phenotype entry goes through a lightweight review process before publication. The process has three stages. First, the compiler collects the source material and drafts the plain-English description, region center, and trait list. Second, an editor cross-checks the draft against at least one independent source, verifies that the region center falls inside the historically documented range for the phenotype, and removes any language that reads as racial stereotyping rather than geographic description. Third, the entry is checked against the disclaimer template to make sure it frames the phenotype as a historical appearance pattern, not a modern identity label.

Reader-reported inaccuracies go through the same review process. When a reader emails us through the Contact page with a specific correction and a verifiable source, we re-run the cross-check stage and update the entry if the source checks out. We do not promise to act on every report, but we read every one and we keep a log of reports and outcomes.

Accuracy Standards

We aim for accuracy at the level of a serious educational reference, not a peer-reviewed journal. Concretely, that means: phenotype names follow the convention used by Human Phenotypes; region centers fall inside the historically documented range for the phenotype and are anchored to roughly 1500 years ago, not to modern borders; trait descriptions are drawn from the source and rewritten without exaggeration; and every entry explicitly states that the phenotype estimates appearance, not DNA ancestry or personal identity. We do not claim that phenotype boundaries are sharp, that any individual matches a phenotype, or that the historical distributions are still accurate today.

Where sources disagree, we default to the more conservative description and note the disagreement in the entry. Where a phenotype is poorly documented or politically sensitive, we either omit it or publish it with an explicit caveat and a shorter description. We never invent trait descriptions or region centers to fill gaps.

Updates & Corrections

Entries are reviewed on a rolling basis and re-published whenever a correction is accepted. We do not maintain a public changelog, but every corrected entry carries an internal note of what changed and why, so future editors can see the reasoning. If a correction is material, for example a region center moving by more than a few hundred kilometers or a trait description changing substantially, we also re-check the related game questions to make sure the quiz still scores fairly.

If you believe an entry is wrong, please send the page URL, the specific text you disagree with, and a source we can verify to hello@ethnicity-guesser.com. Reports with verifiable sources are prioritized over reports without them.

Citation Policy

You are welcome to quote short excerpts from any Ethnicity Guesser page for non-commercial educational purposes, with attribution and a link back to the original page. The composite face images and phenotype photographs shown on the site are sourced from third-party public references; the copyright in those images remains with their respective owners, and any reuse must comply with the license terms set by the original source, which we link to wherever possible. If you want to cite Ethnicity Guesser in an academic or journalistic context, please cite the page URL and the access date, and verify any underlying claim against the linked primary source rather than treating our plain-English summary as authoritative.

Contact

Questions about this Editorial Policy, including source suggestions and correction reports, can be sent to hello@ethnicity-guesser.com. The full disclaimer that frames every entry is on the Disclaimer page.