This term implies that the person has a high proportion of white ancestry and looks more like a white person than a black one. The term was most commonly used in the American South in the late 19th century and early 20th century, though it survives in our culture today. See also yellow.
Slang definitions & phrases for high yellow
high yellow
noun phrase
A light-skinned black person, esp an attractive young woman: I mean high-yellow girls/ took some little high-yaller girl in the closet one day(1923+ Black)