Ethnicities and Origins of the Indian People

Negroids

The Negritos or the Brachycephalic (broad headed) from Africa were the first people to arrive in India. They have survived in their original habitat in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The Jarawas, Onges, Sentinelese and the Great Andamanese are some of the examples. Most of the hill tribes in India have the most obvious resemblance to this ethnic group. These include such tribes as the great Irulas, Kurumbas, Paniyans and Kodars are found in some parts of India, mainly in the South. 

Pro-Australoids and Austrics

These were the next ethnic group to arrive in India after the Negroids.  They were people with wavy hair distributed all over their brown bodies, long faces with low foreheads and prominent eye ridges, thick jaws, noses with low and broad roots, large teeth and palates and small chins. Nowadays the Austrics in India represent a race of medium height, dark complexion with long heads and rather flat noses but otherwise of regular features. The Austrics laid the foundation of Indian civilization much of which survives to this day including the language.

Mongoloids

The Mongoiloids are found mainly in the North eastern parts of India in the states like Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and Tripura. They are also found in parts of West Bengal, Sikkim, and Ladakh. They are people with highly yellowish complexion, oblique eyes, high cheekbones, thin hair and of a medium height. 

Dravidians

These are the people who mainly inhabit the regions in South India such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu etc. They have recently been divided into various sub-groups for example the Paleo-Mediterranean, the true Mediterranean, and the Oriental Mediterranean.

It is believed that they are people of the same origins as many of the people of Asia Minor and pre- Hellenic Aegean's of Greece. It is believed that they built the ancient city and civilization of the Indus valley.

Western Bracycephals

These include the Alpinoids, Dinarics and Armenoids. The Parsis and Kodavas also fall in this category. They are the broad headed people living mainly on the western side of the country such as the Ganga Valley and the delta, parts of Kashmir, Kathiawar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. 

Nordics or the Indo-Aryans

These groups were the last to immigrate to India. They came to India somewhere between 2000 and 1500 B.C. They are now mainly found in the northern and central part of India.

Return From the Origins of the Indian people

Home