South Ethiopid
Group Ethiopid
- common
- occasional
- rare
Description
The southernmost Ethiopid, common between Lake Victoria and Lake Tanganyika, especially in Rwanda, Burundi, but also Uganda, Tanzania, and Eastern DR Congo. In its purest form in Tutsi. Also common in Hema. Sometimes in various Bantu populations, especially Herero who migrated to Namibia from the Rift Valley some centuries ago, also Zulu, even Khoikhoi. Experienced a dramatic reduction in the 1990s due to the Tutsi genocide.
Physical traits
Dark brown, sometimes medium brown skin, tight-curly or kinky hair. (Very) tall, almost reaching Dinkaid standards, ectomorph, hyperbrachyskelic. Dolichocephalic, orthocranic with mildly leptorrhine or mesorrhine, sometimes convex nose. Sharp facial features. Body hair is scant, the lips relatively full. Mild prognathy possible.
Literature
Biasutti (1967) called it Tutsi type, an Ethiopid variety. Originally defined South Ethiopid by Eickstedt (1934, 1943, 1951), who had included Maasai. Also used by Baumann (1952) and Hirschberg (1974). Baumann's (1975) Fumid that found among Bantu nobles can be integrated. Cole (1965) regarded them an admixed Hamitic type.
