Physical Features

The characteristics which serve more than any others to distinguish the true Negrito from other inhabitants of the Philippines are his small stature, kinky hair, and almost black skin. His eyes may be more round, his nose more short and flat, and his limbs more spindling than is the case with peoples of Malayan extraction, but these features are usually less noticeable. Perhaps undue emphasis has been given by writers on the Negrito to his short stature, until the impression has gone abroad that these primitive men are veritable dwarfs. As a matter of fact, individuals sometimes attain the stature of the shortest of the white men, and apparently only a slight infusion of Malayan blood is necessary to cause the Negrito to equal the Malay in, height.

The Aeta of Zambales range in stature from 4 to 5 feet. To be more exact, the maximum height of the 77 individuals measured by me, taking them as they came, with no attempt to select, was 1,600 millimeters (5 feet 2 inches); the maximum height for females was 1,502 millimeters (4 feet 11 inches); the minimum height for males was 1,282 millimeters (4 feet 2 inches), for females, 1,265 millimeters (4 feet). The average of the 48 males measured was 1,463 millimeters (4 feet 9 inches); of the 29 females, 1,378 millimeters (4 feet 6 inches). There is perhaps no greater variation between these figures than there would be between the averages of stature of as many individuals selected at random from any other race. Yet it should be remembered that some of the Negritos included in this list are not pure types—in fact, are no more than half-breeds.

The abnormal length of the arm of the Negritos has been regarded by some writers as an essentially simian characteristic, especially in the case of the pygmy blacks of Central Africa. With the Aeta this characteristic is not so marked, yet 7 out of 8 males had a reach or span greater than the height. The proportion was not so large among the females, being only 2 in 3. The maximum span for males was 1,635 millimeters, for females 1,538 millimeters, but in neither case did the individuals having the greatest span also have the greatest height. The average span of 48 males exceeded the average height by 37 millimeters; the difference in the case of the females was only 16 millimeters.

Length of arm was taken on only 19 individuals, 16 males and 3 females. The longest arm measured 675 millimeters (2 feet 3 inches), which is not so long as the average Caucasian arm, though more out of proportion to the height, in this case being nearly half the latter measurement. The shortest arm, that of an adult female, was 539 millimeters (21 inches).

So far from being ape like in appearance, some of the Aeta are very well-built little men, with broad chests, symmetrical limbs, and well-developed muscles hardened by incessant use. This applies of course only to the young men and boys just approaching manhood, and is especially noticeable in the southern regions, where the Aeta are generally more robust and muscular. The younger females are also as a rule well formed. In the case of unmarried girls the breasts are rounded and erect, but after marriage gradually become more and more pendant until they hang almost to the waist line. With advancing age the muscles shrink, the skin shrivels up until an individual of 40 to 50 years usually has the decrepit appearance of an octogenarian; in fact, 50 is old age with the Aeta. (See plates.)

Anthropometric observations fall naturally into two groups, dealing with the proportions of the head and body, the latter of which have already been discussed. Great interest attaches also to the relative proportions of the different dimensions of the head and especially to the cephalic index obtained by multiplying the maximum breadth by 100 and dividing by the maximum length. Heads with an index of 75 or under are called dolichocephalic; those between 75 and 80, mesaticephalic; and those over 80 brachycephalic. The beads of the Aeta are essentially brachycephalic. Owing to the lack of proper calipers during the greater part of my stay among them, I was able to measure only 19 individuals, but of those all but 5 were in the brachycephalic group, one instance being noted where the index was as great as 92; the lowest was 78. The average of the males was 82 and of the females 86.

Considerable importance in anthropometry is attached to the study of the nose. The typical Aeta nose may be described as broad, flat, bridgeless, with prominent arched alæ almost as high as the central cartilage of the nose and with the nostrils invariably visible from the front. The nasal index obtained by dividing the nasal breadth by the height from the root of the nose to the septum and multiplying the quotient by 100 serves to indicate the group to which the individual belongs. Thus it will be seen that races with a nasal index of more than 100 have a nose wider than it is long. This is a marked characteristic of the Aeta. Of the 76 Aeta I measured, 25 were ultraplatyrhinian—that is, had a nasal index greater than 109. One individual, a female, showed the surprising index of 140.7, the greatest so far recorded to my knowledge. The greatest nasal index among the males was 130.7. Only one example of a mesorhine nose was noted, also of a female, and but 7 platyrhine. The most of them belonged in the hyperplatyrhine group. The following table will show the proper classification of the individuals measured by me:

Nasal index of Zambales Negritos

Group	Sex and number
Group	Males	Females
Mesorhine (69.5–81.4)	—	1
Platyrhine (81.5–87.8)	3	4
Hyperplatyrhine (87.9–108.8)	27	16
Ultraplatyrhine (109 and over)	51	10

The shape of the eye varies from the round negroid of the pure bloods to the elongated mongoloid in the case of mixed types. The color of the eyes is a very dark brown or black. The lips are medium thick, far less thick than the lips of the African negro, and are not protruding.

The hair of the Aeta is uniformly kinky in the case of the pure types. Individuals were noted with other negroid features but with curly hair, showing a probable mixture of blood. The hair grows low on the forehead and is very thick. Eyebrows are not heavy, save in particular instances, and beard is very scanty, though all adult males have some beard. There is very little body hair on adults of either Sex, except in the axillary and pubic regions, and it is scant even in these places. The northern Negritos have practically none in the armpits. Two or three old men were seen with a coating of hair over the back, chest, and legs. The head hair is uniformly of a dirty black color, in some instances sunburned on top to a reddish brown. It turns gray at a comparatively early age, and baldness is frequent. (See Pls. [XI], [XII], [XIII], [XIV], [XV], [XVI].)

In the case of women the hair is generally allowed to grow long, and in this tangled, uncombed state furnishes an excellent breeding place for vermin. However, if the vermin become troublesome the hair is sometimes cut short. (See [Pl. XVII].) The cutting is done with the ever-useful bolo or sharp knife and is a somewhat laborious and painful process. Sometimes the hair may be cropped behind and left long on top. This is a favorite style of wearing it among the men, and is frequently followed by the women. Attempt is seldom made to comb the hair, but frequent vermin-catching onslaughts are made, the person performing the work using a sharp piece of bamboo to separate the tangled kinks and to mash the offending parasite against the thumb nail. In Bataan the Negritos sometimes shave a circular place on the crown, but I am not informed as to the reason. The practice is not followed in Zambales.

The color of the skin is a dark chocolate brown rather than black, and on unexposed portions of the body approaches a yellowish tint of the Malayan. The loathsome skin disease common in the northern region of Luzon gives it a mottled appearance.

The Aeta have practically no prognathism. The hands are not large, but the feet are larger in proportion to the size of the body than those of Filipinos. The toes are spreading, and the large toe frequently extends inward so much as to attract attention, though this can not be said to be a marked characteristic of all individuals. It may be caused by a constant practice of the tree climber—that of grasping a branch between the large toes and the other toes. I have seen Negrito boys who would use their feet in this respect as well as they used their hands.