[Abberon]

I never really thought much of the skin color descriptions of different characters. Personally, I always pictured Kalam and Quick Ben as dark skinned (Arabic to Black) and did the same for everyone in 7C. I pictured the Quon Tali peoples ALL as Mediterranean (like Sicilian or Greek etc with some lighter and darker than others) and then the Genebackins and Letherii as white. I never really 'bought' the blue-skinned Napan thing and thought the whole idea was kind of goofy so i never bothered picturing characters that way.

I really couldn't look at the Malazan world any differently than the real world in this sense. Why would a small area of people all be blue skinned, but then the next city over all be black or white? Wtf? It was much easier just to ignore some of the descriptions and use my imagination...

[Weave]

 Abberon, on 04 July 2011 - 05:13 PM, said:

I really couldn't look at the Malazan world any differently than the real world in this sense. Why would a small area of people all be blue skinned, but then the next city over all be black or white? Wtf? It was much easier just to ignore some of the descriptions and use my imagination...

I also just picture white, but I think the explanation is very apparent in the books. Nearly every 'tribe' of people started in one place, then migrated to another. So just because they're next to each other circa 1165 Burn's sleep, doesn't mean they progenated there.
Other than that I reckon magic could explain it. Or A God's curse, or some human bred with a Tiste who are an ALIEN species, so anything could of discoloured the gene pool in that particular scenario.
Anyhoo i think it's a pretty small thing.

[Lousy]

I like the idea of blue skinned people. In fantasy I prefer things the way I'd like it, not the way it is because it is most similar to our rather mundane world. The green woman in original Star Trek is a great example for a somewhat salacious reason on my part = I love the idea because it piques my interest/curiosity.

[T'renn]

Napan are indeed pretty cool.... actually a pretty good color for a country of pirates.

Quon ranges in colors from black Dal Honese (Kellanved, Dassem, Duiker etc.) through dark blue Napan (Urko, Laseen, Cartheron etc.) to a sort of Asian Itko Kan (Apsalar) and the more Mediterranean Unta, Malaz and Kartool (Tayschrenn is mentioned as being very very tanned) all the way to the fair "white" people from Quon.

Where Quon is a mishmash, Falar is hardly. Inhabited by red and golden haired people with a light complexion (Fiddler, Gesler, Stormy)

I always thought of the people of Genabackis to be more greco, so not really dark.

Seven Cities is Middle-Eastern with the touch of dark brown

Lether is Caucasian as far as I remember

Korelri have a swarthy skin like the peoples of the Levant (syria, Lebanon Turkey)

[Kanese S's]

What? But I thought Faradan Sort was Korelri, and I always pictured her as a redhead.

[Use Of Weapons]

She is. Falari are red- and golden-haired, not red-and-golden haired.

[Gatekeeper]

Duiker is black. Again, how did I miss that?

[Mcflury]

 Gatekeeper, on 04 August 2011 - 07:17 AM, said:

Duiker is black. Again, how did I miss that?

What? Really? Never noticed that either :s
Then again, I imagine almost everyone (except the tiste andii) as white people, mostly some bronze skin like desert people, so it's probably just me.