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5. Australian aborigines among the craniological populations of South and South-East Asia and the Western Pacific

Australian aborigines among the craniological populations of South and South-East Asia and the Western Pacific

Pestriakov A.P., Grigoryeva O.M.

Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of RAS, Moscow

Pestryakov A.N., e-mail: labrecon@yandex.ru; Grigorieva O.M., e-mail: labrecon@yandex.ru

Abstract

The aim of the work is to characterize the Australian aborigines and find out their similarity to the popula-tions of the nearby regions (New Guinea, Oceania, South-East Asia) by special craniological program. The literature data on the craniology of ethnic groups and territories are used. Calculated the average intergroup parameters of craniological traits, their dispersion and their bivariate correlations. For the comparison of craniological data on the Australians with neighboring regions was used cluster analysis. It turned out that geographically the closest to the Australian aborigines series Papuans and Melanesians, belonging to the same craniotype of eastern tropids, exter-nally (in the form of the skull) are similar to them. However, the intergroup analysis showed that this similarity of Australians on the one hand and the Papuans and Melanesians on the other has a different genesis, as the total size of the skull in the Papuans and Melanesians of the most closely linked with the longitudinal and high diameter, but in the Australian aborigines, with the longitudinal and transverse skull diameters. It is right both male and female se-ries. In this respect, the series of Indian region were closer to the Australian aborigines. Also according to the ethnic anthropology data of the Australian aborigines and the most of India’s population belong to the same race of modern humanity (veddo-australian). At the present time some of the genetic data shows some similarity between Austra-lians and the populations of India. On the basis of our research the waves of migration in the region are the follow-ing. The first wave of migrants in the direction toward Australia consists of the protoaustralian populations (like seria Cowswamp). The next wave from the West is presented the ancient equatorial anthropological types. The last wave from the North consists of the populations of the Pacific Mongoloids. Each of these waves are currently domi-nates on a certain territory: australoids on the continent of Australia, the Eastern equatorials - in Melanesia and on the island of New Guinea, Mongoloids, in most parts of Indonesia and Indochina.

Keywords

anthropology, craniology, craniotype, tropids, macrotropids, the Australian aborigines, Papuans, Melanesian

Цит.: Pestriakov A.P., Grigoryeva O.M. Australian aborigines among the craniological populations of South and South-East Asia and the Western Pacific // Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin (Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Seria XXIII. Antropologia), 2013; 2/2013; с. 17-33