The facts are these: Herodotus, a Greek writer in the 5th century B.C. claims that "the people of Colchis must be Egyptians because like them they are black-skinned and wooly-haired." (History, Book II.) The interesting thing about what Herodotus wrote is that had he believed the Egyptians to be any other color than black like other Africans he could have chosen other Greek words than the one he chose. His word is melaschroes, black-skinned. If Herodotus thought the Egyptians were white he would have used leucochroes. Had they been simply brown, like so many African Americans, he may have used phrenychroes, but he chose the word melaschroes. This word comes from the same root as Melanesia, the black island, or melanite, a black garnet. The ancient Greek use of "melas" was precise. Egypt is in Africa. Why shouldn't the ancient Egyptians be anything other than black?