I'm going to answer the question about the origin of various races in the Vedic paradigm. Again I will try to leave aside my own speculations, which may be faulty. Rather I will rely on the authority of Srimad-bhagavatam which is the distilled essence of Vedic knowledge as propounded by the saints and sages of yore.
Overview
The Vedic perspective on the process of creation is ultimately, everything is created by the Supreme Lord either directly or indirectly. Indirectly would mean through one of His deputed agents for creating (such as Brahma) or by the interactions of the modes of material nature.
The example of Brahma is interesting. The Vedic version is that while Brahma is sometimes considered a secondary creator, in actual fact he can only distribute what has already been created by The Almighty. An example would be the way a gardener distributes seedlings in a garden. The gardener did not create the seed or the soil, but follows the process for creating a seedling (putting the seed in contact with the soil) and in time can distribute the seedlings into fertile ground.
Srimad-bhagavatam 3.10 TEXT 7
TRANSLATION
Thereafter he (Brahma) saw that the lotus on which he was situated was spread throughout the universe, and he contemplated how to create all the planets, which were previously merged in that very same lotus.
PURPORT
The seeds of all the planets in the universe were impregnated in the lotus on which Brahmā was situated. All the planets were already generated by the Lord, and all the living entities were also born in Brahmā. The material world and the living entities were all already generated in seedling forms by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and Brahmā was to disseminate the same seedlings all over the universe. The real creation is therefore called sarga, and, later on, the manifestation by Brahmā is called visarga. (end purport)
The Vedic version is the various races or nations of the world come into being at the time of creation. According to the Vedas there are 8,400,000 species of life of which 400,000 are human beings (spread across the universe). So just as we see varieties of animals, trees, insects and such there are varieties of man. This occurs because of the variety of desires of the living entities. The Lord kindly supplies them with the best type of body to fulfill their desires.
Division of Nations
From this text we can see that the various nations or races of mankind were existing long ago. And they were known throughout the world.
Srimad-bhagavatam 2.4 TEXT 18
TRANSLATION
Kirāta, Hūṇa, Āndhra, Pulinda, Pulkaśa, Ābhīra, Śumbha, Yavana, members of the Khasa races and even others addicted to sinful acts can be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord, due to His being the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him.
PURPORT
Kirāta: A province of old Bhārata-varṣa (Greater India) mentioned in the Bhīṣma-parva of Mahābhārata. Generally the Kirātas are known as the aboriginal tribes of India, and in modern days the Santal Parganas in Bihar and Chota Nagpur might comprise the old province named Kirāta.
Hūṇa (Huns): The area of East Germany and part of Russia is known as the province of the Hūṇas. Accordingly, sometimes a kind of hill tribe is known as the Hūṇas.
Āndhra: A province in southern India mentioned in the Bhīṣma-parva of Mahābhārata. It is still extant under the same name.
Pulinda (Greeks): It is mentioned in the Mahābhārata (Ādi-parva 174.38), viz., the inhabitants of the province of the name Pulinda. This country was conquered by Bhīmasena and Sahadeva (Vedic warrior kings). The Greeks are known as Pulindas, and it is mentioned in the Vana-parva of Mahābhārata that the non-Vedic race of this part of the world would rule over the world. This Pulinda (Greek) province was also one of the provinces of Bhārata (Greater India), and the inhabitants were classified amongst the kṣatriya (warrior) kings. But later on, due to their giving up the brahminical culture, they were mentioned as mlecchas (just as those who are not followers of the Islamic culture are called kafirs and those who are not followers of the Christian culture are called heathens).
Ābhīra (Arabs): This name also appears in the Mahābhārata, both in the Sabhā-parva and Bhīṣma-parva. It is mentioned that this province was situated on the River Sarasvatī in Sind. The modern Sind province formerly extended on the other side of the Arabian Sea, and all the inhabitants of that province were known as the Ābhīras. They were under the domination of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, and according to the statements of Mārkaṇḍeya the mlecchas of this part of the world would also rule over Bhārata. Later on this proved to be true, as in the case of the Pulindas. On behalf of the Pulindas, Alexander the Great conquered India, and on behalf of the Ābhīras, Muhammad Ghori conquered India. These Ābhīras were also formerly kṣatriyas (warriors kings) within the brahminical culture, but they gave up the connection. The kṣatriyas who were afraid of Paraśurāma and had hidden themselves in the Caucasian hilly regions later on became known as the Ābhīras, and the place they inhabited was known as Ābhīradeśa.
Śumbhas or Kaṅkas: The inhabitants of the Kaṅka province of old Bhārata (Greater India), mentioned in the Mahābhārata.
Yavanas (Turks): Yavana was the name of one of the sons of Mahārāja Yayāti who was given the part of the world known as Turkey to rule. Therefore the Turks are Yavanas due to being descendants of Mahārāja Yavana. The Yavanas were therefore kṣatriyas (warrior kings), and later on, by giving up the brahminical culture, they became mleccha-yavanas. Descriptions of the Yavanas are in the Mahābhārata (Ādi-parva 85.34). Another prince called Turvasu was also known as Yavana, and his country was conquered by Sahadeva, one of the Pāṇḍavas. The western Yavana joined with Duryodhana in the Battle of Kurukṣetra under the pressure of Karṇa. It is also foretold that these Yavanas also would conquer India, and it proved to be true.
Khasa(Chinese): The inhabitants of the Khasadeśa are mentioned in the Mahābhārata (Droṇa-parva). Those who have a stunted growth of hair on the upper lip are generally called Khasas. As such, the Khasa are the Mongolians, the Chinese and others who are so designated.
The above-mentioned historical names are different nations of the world. (end text)
Previous to the advent of the age of Kali yuga the world was united under one Vedic civilization. As we can see from this verse some were considered aboriginal while other cultures were considered theologically and/or socially more advanced. They were united in the sense that not only did they accept the rule of the Vedic kings, the all had a similar goal as the primary feature of their culture. The goal was to understand the relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Whether this was expressed as a simple aboriginal tribe or the highly technological and spiritually advanced culture. The goal was the same to know the Supreme and this was expressed through religious rites, art, music, dance, philosophy, metaphysics, etc.
With the advent of Kali yuga 5000 years ago, the world and the nations started to become divided by Vedic and non-Vedic civilizations. The prime delineating factor would be the prominence of animal slaughter in the various cultures. The non-Vedic cultures at first used animal slaughter in a religious ritual but ultimately it led to what we see in modern times with the wholesale slaughter of animals with out any restriction. Also, due to this divide that various wars and movements of people have occurred. Before Kali yuga there was no need for so much movement of people as all cultures had the same goal and many similarities in way of life.
Conclusion
However, this much like our previous discussion about vimanas. Looking at the origin of race or nations separate from the Vedic conclusions is a fruitless endeavor. The negative effects of this age effect all people of all races and nationalities. No one is immune. The whole point of the Vedas is that devotional service to the Supreme is available to all peoples, at all times, and in every circumstance. The power of the process of devotional service can destroy all impediments on the path back to Godhead, just as a blazing fire can consume an unlimited amount of wood. There is no bar against anyone's advancing in the matter of God realization. The conclusion is that the Lord being all-powerful, can under any and every circumstance accept anyone from any part of the world, either personally or through His bona fide representatives.
One of the most famous verses in this regard is Bhagavad-gita Chapter 5 Text 18.
The Equal Vision Verse
TEXT 18
vidyā-vinaya-sampanne
brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
śuni caiva śva-pāke ca
paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
SYNONYMS
vidyā—education; vinaya—gentleness; sampanne—fully equipped; brāhmaṇe—in the brāhmaṇa; gavi—in the cow; hastini—in the elephant; śuni—in the dog; ca—and; eva—certainly; śvapāke—in the dog-eater (the outcaste); ca—respectively; paṇḍitāḥ-those who are so wise; sama-darśinaḥ—do see with equal vision.
TRANSLATION
The humble sage, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learned and gentle brāhmaṇa, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste] .
PURPORT
A Kṛṣṇa conscious person does not make any distinction between species or castes. The brāhmaṇa (priest) and the outcaste may be different from the social point of view, or a dog, a cow, or an elephant may be different from the point of view of species, but these differences of body are meaningless from the viewpoint of a learned transcendentalist. This is due to their relationship to the Supreme, for the Supreme Lord, by His plenary portion as Paramātmā (supersoul), is present in everyone's heart. Such an understanding of the Supreme is real knowledge. As far as the bodies are concerned in different castes or different species of life, the Lord is equally kind to everyone because He treats every living being as a friend yet maintains Himself as Paramātmā regardless of the circumstances of the living entities. The Lord as Paramātmā is present both in the outcaste and in the brāhmaṇa, although the body of a brāhmaṇa and that of an outcaste are not the same. The bodies are material productions of different modes of material nature, but the soul and the Supersoul within the body are of the same spiritual quality. The similarity in the quality of the soul and the Supersoul, however, does not make them equal in quantity, for the individual soul is present only in that particular body, whereas the Paramātmā is present in each and every body. A Kṛṣṇa conscious person has full knowledge of this, and therefore he is truly learned and has equal vision. The similar characteristics of the soul and Supersoul are that they are both conscious, eternal and blissful. But the difference is that the individual soul is conscious within the limited jurisdiction of the body, whereas the Supersoul is conscious of all bodies. The Supersoul is present in all bodies without distinction.
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