The nasal (nasion-akanthion) height as a criterion of race

THE NASAL (NASION-AKANTHION) H E I G H T AS A CRITERION O F RACE

JOHN CAMERON Dalholcsie University, Halifax, Nova Scotin

CRANIOMETRIC STUDIES, So. 25

The writer recently published the results of a study of the facial height (2) in representative racial types of modern man. As a consequence, he ascertained that these could be categorized into three main groups. As the nasal height participates in the facial height, the present, paper may be regarded as a sort of sequel to that previous communication. As a matter of fact, the author ascertained during the course of that investigation that races which possessed a high average fo r the facial height also exhibited a high average for the nasal height. Moreover, he found that the converse of this state- ment also held true.

As the present paper is founded mainly upon the data furnished in HrdliEka’s three catalogues(4, 5, 6), it must be particularly noted that the term ‘nasal height,’ which will be utilized throughout this paper, will refer in every case to the nasion-akanthion height. It is important and indeed es- sential to direct attention to this fact at the very commence- ment of the paper, as the writer has pointed out recently(3) that this does not represent the true nasal height. Thus he found that the akanthion, due to racial and other causes, did not really represent the level of the floor of the nasal fossa in a large proportion of the crania examined. F o r this reason he devised a new craniometric point, termed the subnasion, which represented the approximate level of the nasal floor on the facial norma. Of course, the nasion is open to the same criticism as the akanthion, for it does not necessarily

273 AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, VOL. U V , NO. 2

APBIL-JUNE, 1930

274 J O H N CAMERON

represent the level of the nasal roof on the facial ~zormu. However, the nasion and tlie akanthion have this advantage over many of the other craniometric points, namely, they are capable of being readily localized. Moreover, there can be no doubt regarding the fact that the nasion-akanthion height is a very important cranial measurement which, as will be shown presently, displays distinctive racial attributes.

The present paper was suggested to the writer while he was engaged in the measurement of the Eskimo crania of the Canadian Arctic Expedition, 1913-1918. Fo r instance, he found that one of the male crania of that collection(1) exhibited a nasal height of G4.0 mm., which was of course most exceptional. This measurement was made all the more im- pressive when compared with the relatively small nasal height yielded by a male Melanesian skull(8) which registered oiily 51.0 mm. Such strongly contrasting results suggested that a distinctive difference in the nasal height existed in these two very diverse racial groups. The author was accordingly stimulated to extend this investigation so as to include any other available racial types of modern man.

At the time the author made the above observations the three valuable catalogues of human crania compiled by HrdliEka(4, 5 , 6) had not yet been published. When these became available to the present writer, he was placed in the fortunate position of being able to carry out his investiga- tions on the nasal height in not only very diverse, but also very widely distributed racial types of modern man. The cranial material that was utilized is shown in the subjoined list.

The present paper is to be regarded as a preliminary communication. The author has therefore decided to postpone the study of the standard deviations and the coefficients of variability of the nasal height, until he is able to secure cranial material representative of all the races of modern mail.

CRANIOMETRIC STUDIES 275

'Wales

Easter11 (Greenlalid) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Western (St. Lawrence Island) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) . . . 144 Mongol (U.S.N. Museum) ............................... 79

Scottish crania (Turner) ................................. 84 American iiegro (1;. S.N. Museum) ....................... 33 South Australian native .................................. 169 Tasmanian iiative ....................................... 15 h'ew Britain Melanesian ................................. 13

Arikara American Iiidiail (U. S. N. Museum) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Females 34 82 64 43 38 13 121

14 11

TH,E RAKGES O F VARIATION O F T H E N A S A L HEIGHT

This cranial dimension did not display very wide ranges of variation in the Eskimo and American Indian crania. As a matter of fact, one would not expect to find very extensive ranges in a comparatively homogeneous race like the Eskimo. The extreme maximum, namely, 65.0 mm., was found in one of the male Mongol crania, while the extreme minimum, namely, 40.5 mm., was found in one of the male American negro crania. With regard to the female crania, the extreme maximum, namely, 57.0 mm., was found in the Scottish crania, and the extreme minimum, namely, 36.0 mm., in the South Australian native. A glance at tables 1 and 2 will show that the most extensive ranges of variation tended to be exhibited by both sexes of the American negro and the Australian native. I t may be further observed that the maximum dimensions of the nasal height tended to be exhibited by the Mon- golian races and the minimum dimensions by the black races.

TAELE 1 The ranges of variation of the nasal height in representative racial types. In

this table the results for the male crania are alone recorded __________.- - -___ _ _ _ _ _ ____- --

Eastern (Greenland) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum)

Mongol (U.S.N. Museum) Arikara American Iiidiaii (U.S.N. Museum) Scottish crania (Turner) 60 46 America11 negro (U.S.N. Museum) South Australian native 58 41 1 7 Tasrnaniau native 55 12 New Britain Melaiiesian 1 50.5 1 40.5 1 10

Westeru (St. Lawrence Tsland) Eskimo

276 J O H N CAMERON

MIN.

Nm. 45 46 46 46 44 39.5 36 39 41

TABLE 2

The ranges of variation of the nasal height in representative racial types. I n this table the results for the female mania are alone recoraea

E. OF V. ~ _ _ _ Mm. 9 10 11 10 13 12.5 16 9.5 5.5

Eastern (Greenland) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Western (St. Lawrence Island) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Mongol (U.S.N. Museum) Arikara Ameriean Indian (U.S.N. Museum) Scottish crania (Turner) American negro (U.S.N. Museum) South Australian native Tasmanian native New Britain Melanesian

dlm. 54 56 57 56 57 52 52 48.5 46.5

THE AVERAGE NASAL HEIGHT I N THE ESKIMO

The average nasal height for the Eastern or Greenland Eskimo male crania is recorded in HrdliEka’s catalogue (4) as 53.3 mm. The Western Eskimo crania, on the other hand, came from St. Lawrence Island, which is situated between Alaska and Asia. On studying the average nasal height for the males of this cranial group, the writer was astonished to note that it displayed a definite increase, when compared with that for the Eastern Eskimo males, the actual figure being 55.4 mm. These findings were, moreover, confirmed by a study of the female crania. For example, the average nasal height for the Eastern Eskimo females proved to be 50.0 mm., as contrasted with 51.2 111111. for those from the western area. It was thus obvious that the increase in the nasal height from east to west followed consistently the increase in the facial height, when studied in the same direction. The latter ob- servation was recorded by the writer in a recent communication(2), in which he stated that “the average facial height exhibited a perceptible increase when studied from east to west through the various Eskimo geographic groups.” We are thereby furnished with one more example to illustrate the quite remarkable morphological changes which the Eskimo skull undergoes when studied in the tribal groups from the eastern and western areas. For instance, HrdliEka(4) has


pointed out that “the cranial breadth and with i t the cranial index decrease gradually from the west to the east. There is no sudden change a t any geographical point.” The present writer(9) has shown that the length-height cranial index is also involved in this remarkable transformation, for he states that “the male indices become definitely lowered in the Cen- tral and Western Eskimo groups.” He( 10) has likewise demonstrated that “the breadth-height cranial index gradually diminishes from east to west through the various Eskimo geographic groups. ’ ’ Still further evidence regarding the widespread character of these remarkable morphological changes were discovered by the present writer, while studying a new cranial index, the Tawe$& index( 11). For example, he found that this index displayed “a definite increase in the Western as compared with the Eastern Eskimo.”

T’hese remarkable transformations will be more fully dis- cussed when the average nasal height for the Mongol crania is studied, which will be in the next section of this paper. In the meanwhile, it will be convenient to display in tabular form the increase in the average nasal height of the Western as compared with the Eastern Eskimo.

TABLE 3

The average nasal height is definitely greater in the Western than in the Eastern Eskimo. Note that this increase is consistent f o r both sexes

- _____I_____-

MALES FXHALES _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ~ _ _ _ _ _ _ I__

Eastern (Greeiifaiid) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) 1 :; ~ ;;o Western (St. Lawreuce Island) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) I 55.4 1 51.2 -___ ~ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .

THE AVERAGE NASAL HEIGHT IN THE MONGOL

These Mongol crania, it may be noted, all came from Urga in Mongolia. The average nasal height for the males was given in HrdliEka’s catalogue(4) as 56.6 mm. It may be observed that this represented a further increase when compared with that for the Western Eskimo male crania. This racial difference, it may be added, was exhibited also by the female crania. Thus, the average nasal height for the female

278 J O H N CAMERON

Mongol crania was 51.9 mm., as compared with 51.2 mm. for the Western Eskimo female crania. It is true that in this case the difference was merely fractional, but still i t was consis tent.

The writer has been gradually accumulating a wealth of evidence to demonstrate the process of evolution of the Eskimo type of skull from that of a Mongolian ancestor. I n order to enhance the feasibility of this theory, one would have to prove the existence of an intermediate phase between these two types of skull. Moreover, one would judge that the Eastern, or Greenland, Eskimo must be the tribal group that has migrated farthest away from his Mongolian ancestor, and has on that account developed the most marked environ- mental changes in his skull. It is certainly evident that the nasal height fits very accurately into this scheme. For example, we have found that the Western Eskimo, who has not become very far removed, geographically speaking, from the ancestral type, is in his correct position, morphologically speaking, as the transition stage between the Eastern Eskimo and his Mongolian ancestor. It is indeed remarkable to note that one can trace step by step the evolutionary changes that have affected the average nasal height of the Eskimo during his migration eastward.

The author made a brief reference to the evolution of the Eskimo type of skull in his report(1) on the Eskimo crania of the Canadian Arctic Expedition 1913-1918. He ascertained that one of the most remarkable features was the transformation of the brachycephalic Mongolian type of skull into the markedly dolichocephalic type, as found in the Eastern Eskimo. Since that time he made a study of the length-height cranial index(9), and was enabled to demonstrate that “the male indices become definitely lowered in the Central and Western Eskimos until they approximate to those of the Mongol crania.” He has likewise shown( 10) that “the breadth-height cranial index gradually diminishes from east to west through the various Eskimo geographic groups, until it finally approximates to that of the Mongol.” Again, in

CBANIOMETRIC STUDIES 279

Eastern (Greenland) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Westerii (St. Lawrence Island) Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Moiigol (U.S.N. Museum)

another paper dealing with the -& index, a new cranial index(l1) recently devised by him, he has demonstrated that in the Western Eskimo it “represents the transition stage between that of the Eastern Eskimo and that of his Mongolian ancestor. ”

TABLE 4

The average nasal height of the Eskimo undergoes a gradual increase when studied from east to west, until it finally approximates to that of the Mongol

Ym. Mm. 53.3 50.0 55.4 51.2 56.6 51.9

I MALES 1 FEMALES

T H E AVERAGE NASAL HEIGHT I N T H E AMERICAN INDIAN

The Arikara Indian was selected as an illustration of this racial type, as he was represented by larger numbers of crania in Hrdli6ka’s catalogue(5) than any of the other tribal groups. It may be noted that the territorial region of the Arikara Indian was confined mainly to South Dakota.

The average nasal height for the male crania was given in the catalogue as 55.6 mm., that is to say, practically the same as that for the Western Eskimo males, and therefore slightly less than that for the Mongol males.

The average nasal height for the female crania was registered as 51.8 mm., which was practically the same as the average for the Mongol female crania, namely, 51.9 111111. It was thus evident that the average nasal heights for these American Indian crania conformed strictly to the Mongol type, and thus emphasized their Mongolian ancestry. It is appropriate to mention at this stage that among all the racial groups that were examined in connection with this research, the greatest average nasal heights were exhibited by these Mongolian types, as represented by the American Indian, the Mongol, and the Eskimo. Those of the latter race from the Greenland area exhibited in the case of the males an average very slightly below that for the Scottish male crania.

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,4part from this fact, the general average nasal height for the Mongolian races was so definitely above that for the other racial types which were studied that the writer decided to place them in a group by themselves in table 5.

THE AVERAGE NASAL HEIGHT IN THE SCOTTISH CRANIA

The material for this section of the investigation was ob- tained from S i r Wm. Turner’s monograph(7) on the craniology of the people of Scotland. The average nasal height for the male crania was 53.5 mm., which was almost exactly the same as the average of 53.3 111111. for the Greenland Eskimo male crania. We were thus faced with the interesting fact that the average nasal height in the latter tribal group had become reduced from the Mongolian average, until it was almost exactly the same as that for the European type of skull. The comparisons in the case of the female crania were even more remarkable, since the average nasal height for the Scottish females was 49.9 mm., which was practically the same as the average of 50.0 mm. for the Greenland Eskimo females. In spite of this fact, the average nasal height for these Scot- tish crania was definitely below the general average for the Mongolian races. This fact prompted the writer to place these Scottish crania in a group by themselves in table 5.

THE AVERAGE NASAL HEIGHT IN THE BLACK RACES

The American negro crania were designated in HrdliEka ’s catalogue(6) as “full blood or nearly so.” The average nasal height for these negro males was 46.6 mm., which repFe- sented a marked reduction when compared with that for the Scottish male crania. This reduction was even more pro- nounced when compared with the averages for some of the Mongolian races. For example, it may be noted from table 5 that the average nasal height for these male negro crania was exactly 8 mm. less than that for the male Mongol crania. This reduction was also very evident in the case of the female negroes, their average nasal height being only 44.5 mm., as compared, for example, with 51.9 mm. for the female hIoiigol crania.


It was thus clear that the average nasaJ height in the negro was very much less than that found ig the white and the Mongolian races. The writer’s next duty obviously was to investigate this cranial dimension in some of the other black races. For instance, he ascertained that the average for the South Australian native male crania was 48.5 mm., which, it may be noted, was fractionally less even than that for the male negro. The average for the male Tasmanian native crania was found to display a still further reduction, namely, to 47.9 mm. The lowest ebb for this cranial dimension was recorded, however, by the New Britain Melanesian crania, which yielded an average nasal height of only 45.4 mm. for the males and 44.2 mm. f o r the females.

These four representatives of the black races that have just been mentioned thus formed one group characterized by ex- tremely low average nasal heights, all being well under 50. They have therefore been inserted in one group in table 5.

The results of this investigation thus indicated that the racial material which was at the disposal of the writer could be categorized under three groups. For example, the highest average nasal height was found in the Mongolian races, as typified by the Eskimo, the Mongol, and the American Indian. There thus appeared to be some justification for the fact that one might speak of the Mongolian type of nasal height, as exhibited by these three racial groups. I n striking contrast to this type, the lowest average nasal heights, as measured from nasion to the akanthion, were found in four racial types, namely, the American negro, the native Australian, the native Tasmanian, and the New Britain Melanesian, which therefore constituted a group by themselves. Occupying an intermediate position between these above groups were the Scottish crania of Turner(7). It is true that there was practically no difference between their average nasal height and those for the Greenland Eskimo crania, but their averages were definitely below those for the other Mongolian racial types.

The writer ought to mention that no extensive series of crania were available to represent the dwarf races, e.g., the

282 JOHN CAMERON

Andaman Islanders and the pygmies of Central Africa. It would certainly have proved of interest to compare their average nasal heights with those of the racial groups shown in table 5.

TABLE 5

T h e racial material that was available fo r this investigation could be categorized into three groups, so f a r as the average nasal height was concerned

First group : Mongol (U.S.N. Museum) St. Lawrence Island Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Greenland Eskimo (U.S.N. Museum) Arikara Amerieaii Indian (U.S.N. Museum)

Scottish crania (Turner)

American negro (U.S.N. Museum) South Australiaii native Tasmanian native New Britain Melanesian

Second group:

Third group :

MALES

Mm.

56.6 55.4 53.3 55.6

53.5

48.6 48.5 47.9 45.4

FEMALES

Mm,

51.9 51.2 50.0 51.8

49.9

44.5 45.6 45.0 44.2

The writer has shown in a recent paper(2) that races which possessed a high average for the facial height also exhibited a high average for the nasal height. He likewise ascertained that the converse held true, namely, that races which possessed a low average for the facial height also exhibited a low average for the nasal height.

CONCLUSIONS

1. The author made a study of the average nasal height in diverse racial types, and found that by its means one could categorize modern man into three main groups.

2. The first group was found to be composed of Mongolian races, as typified by the Mongol, the Eskimo, and the North American Indian. These were found to possess the highest averages for the nasal height.

3. The third group was found to contain four representatives of the black races, namely, the American negro, the


native Australian, the native Tasmanian, and the Melanesian. These races possessed the lowest averages for the nasal height.

4. The second, or intermediate, group was so called because it evidently possessed averages intermediate between those for the first and third groups. The only material that was available to represent this group consisted of Turner’s Scot- tish crania.

5. There is no hard and fast zone of demarcation between these three racial groups, owing to the fact that the nasal height displays wide ranges of variation.

6. The average nasal height of the Eskimo undergoes a gradual increase when studied from east (Greenland) to west (St. Lawrence Island) until it finally approximates to that of the Mongol.

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3

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LITERATURE CITED

CAMERON, J O ~ N 1923 Report of the Canadian Arctic Expedition, 1913- 1918, XII .

1929 Am. J. Phys. Anthrop., X I I I .

1930 The subnasion. A new cranial point. Its significance in modern and fossil man, the anthropoids and lower mammals. Am. J. Phys. Anthrop., XII I .

HKDLICKA, ALES 1924 Catalogue no. 2480, United States Xational Museum, Washington.

__- 1927 Catalogue no. 2631, United States National Museum, Washington.

-- 1928 Catalogue no. 2696, United States National Museum, Washington.

TURNER, SIR U’M. 1903 Craniology of the people of Scotland. Trans. Roy Soc. Edin., XL, pt. 3.

CAMEKON, JOHN 1918 Two remarkable skulls from the New Hebrides. Trans. N. S. Instit. Sci., XV.

1929 A survey of the length-height cranial index in diverse racial types of the Hominidae.

A survey of the breadth-height cranial index in diverse racial types of the Hominidae.

1929 The proportion between the nasion-alveolar height and the nasal width. J o u r . Anat., LXI I I .

The facial height as a criterion of race.

Am. J. Phys. Anthrop., X I I I .

Am. J. Phys. Anthrop., X I I I . ___- 1929

A new cranial index and its significance.

The nasal (nasion-akanthion) height as a criterion of race

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