Part 5

The Fijian nose shows a strong tendency to broadness of the bridge. Two-thirds show pronounced breadth of bridge and the remainder are medium. Pronounced broadness increases in the interior groups (81 per cent) and shows a marked decline in the east (40 per cent).

Nasal profiles are most often straight (77 per cent), but convex noses are not uncommon (21 per cent). Convexity is slightly more frequent in the east (26 percent), whereas in the coastal people its incidence drops to 16 per cent.

_Nasal-Tip Thickness_

Subm. + ++ +++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 1 0 344 42 461 58 1 0 812 Interior 0 0 55 36 98 64 0 0 153 East 1 1 80 67 39 33 0 0 120 Coast 0 0 94 45 114 55 1 1 209 N.W. 0 0 27 34 52 66 0 0 79

_Nasal-Tip Inclination_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 731 90 57 7 24 3 0 0 812 Interior 147 96 6 4 0 0 0 0 153 East 109 91 6 5 5 4 0 0 120 Coast 186 89 16 8 7 3 0 0 209 N.W. 71 90 6 8 2 3 0 0 79

_Nasal Wings_

Compressed Medium Flaring Total No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 0 0 198 24 615 76 813 Interior 0 0 25 16 128 84 153 East 0 0 70 58 50 42 120 Coast 0 0 42 20 167 80 209 N.W. 0 0 16 20 63 80 79

The nasal tip is pronounced more often than not, 58 per cent showing this condition. The remaining 42 per cent have tips of medium thickness. Thicker tips occur more often in the interior (64 per cent) and in the northwest (66 per cent), least often in the east (33 per cent).

Usually the nasal tip is not inclined downward. Slight and moderate inclination has a combined incidence of only 10 per cent.

Flaring nasal wings are a common condition (76 per cent). This incidence rises to 84 per cent in the interior and drops to 42 per cent in the east.

MOUTH

_Lip Thickness: Membranous_

Subm. + ++ +++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 19 2 428 53 364 45 2 0 813 Interior 10 7 43 28 100 65 0 0 153 East 1 1 83 69 36 30 0 0 120 Coast 1 1/2 88 42 119 57 1 1/2 209 N.W. 4 5 39 49 36 46 0 0 79 Tonga 12 10 97 84 7 6 0 0 116

_Lip Thickness: Integumental_

Subm. + ++ +++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 4 1/2 608 75 201 25 0 0 813 Interior 1 1/2 114 75 38 25 0 0 153 East 1 1 100 83 19 16 0 0 120 Coast 2 1 164 78 43 21 0 0 209 N.W. 0 0 55 70 24 30 0 0 79 Fiji II 0 0 1 1/2 26 20 106 80 133 Solomons 0 0 0 0 12 14 73 86 85

_Lip Eversion_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 12 1 333 41 444 55 24 3 813 Interior 0 0 63 41 88 58 2 1 153 East 8 7 77 64 35 29 0 0 120 Coast 0 0 63 30 138 66 8 4 209 N.W. 1 1 26 33 51 65 1 1 79

_Lip Seam_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 33 4 429 53 343 42 8 1 813 Interior 1 1 79 52 73 48 0 0 153 East 14 12 77 64 29 24 0 0 120 Coast 6 3 105 50 94 45 4 2 209 N.W. 3 4 44 56 32 41 0 0 79

Fijian lips are Negroid in thickness in many instances. Membranous lips are thick in 45 per cent of the series, medium in 53 per cent, and submedium in 25 per cent. Thickest lips occur in the interior and coastal areas where the pronounced type registers 65 per cent and 57 per cent, respectively. In the east, lips are more moderate in thickness, and the pronounced category drops to 30 per cent.

Integumental lips also tend to be heavy but not so much as the mucous parts. Twenty-five per cent of the total Fijians have thick integumental lips and the remainder are moderate. Howells' Fiji II series classes 80 per cent as very pronounced and the remainder as pronounced. The Solomon Islanders, with an 86 per cent incidence of very pronounced, have the heaviest lips of all.

Lip eversion varies largely between moderate and submedium, 55 percent and 41 per cent, respectively. The interior and coastal Fijians show this trait a little more often than the others, whereas the eastern people have least lip eversion. The lip seam is present in nearly all cases, but not to a pronounced degree. Fifty-three per cent are submedium and 42 per cent are moderate. The eastern groups are definitely less endowed with this trait. The other provinces vary but little from the total distribution.

TEETH

_Bite_

Under E-E Subm. over + over Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 2 0 518 64 274 34 13 2 807 Interior 0 0 94 61 59 39 0 0 153 East 0 0 73 61 45 38 2 2 120 Coast 1 0 130 62 76 36 0 0 207 N.W. 1 1 49 62 23 29 3 4 76 Fiji II 4 3 50 38 77 59 0 0 131 Solomons 1 1 37 45 45 54 0 0 83

_Caries_

Absent Subm.(1-4) + (5-8) ++ (9-16) +++ (17-x) Total No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 645 78 80 10 58 7 22 3 8 1 813 Interior 130 84 16 10 3 2 1 1 3 2 153 East 100 83 10 12 4 3 2 1 4 3 120 Coast 153 73 29 14 16 8 8 4 3 1 209 N.W. 62 80 9 11 6 8 1 1 0 0 78

_Crowding_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 685 84 115 14 13 2 0 0 813 Interior 134 88 19 12 0 0 0 0 153 East 100 83 17 14 3 3 0 0 120 Coast 180 86 25 12 4 2 0 0 209 N.W. 64 81 14 18 0 0 0 0 78

_Tooth Eruption_

Complete Incomplete Total No. % No. %

Fiji I 796 98 15 2 811 Interior 153 100 0 0 153 East 119 99 1 1 120 Coast 199 95 8 4 207 N.W. 74 94 2 3 76

_Wear_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 184 23 443 54 144 18 42 5 813 Interior 27 {18} 58 {38} 37 {24} 31 {20} 153 East 26 {22} 69 {57} 24 {20} 1 {1} 120 Coast 60 {29} 120 {57} 28 {13} 1 {1/2} 209 N.W. 12 {15} 47 {60} 17 {22} 2 {3} 78

The jaws of Fijians have a rather distinctive frequency of edge-to-edge bite. I recorded this as 64 per cent, but Howells' series indicates a 38 per cent incidence.

The quality of Fijian teeth as reflected by frequency of caries is excellent. Nearly 80 per cent of the total show no tooth decay. The soundest teeth from this standpoint occur in the interior, the east, and the northwest. The coastal people show the highest incidence of caries, an interesting point since many of this sample come from around Suva and have more access to the Western processed foods.

Tooth crowding is quite uncommon to Fijians, a condition consistent with their generous jaw conformation. Crowding is noted in only 16 per cent of the series, and most of it is slight.

Tooth eruption is complete in nearly all the subjects. A 2 per cent incidence of incomplete eruption is entirely due to the immaturity of some of the young adults. No pathological suppression was noted.

Some wear of the teeth is recorded for more than three-quarters of the series, but lacking age incidence, the data has limited meaning. The Fijian diet is not abrasive the way, for instance, it is for the Indians of our Southwest, where the staple food is ground in stone mills.

EARS

_Ear Helix_

Subm. + ++ +++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 230 28 511 63 72 9 0 0 813 Interior 45 29 99 65 9 6 0 0 153 East 29 24 74 62 17 14 0 0 120 Coast 58 28 128 61 23 11 0 0 209 N.W. 24 30 51 65 4 5 0 0 79

_Darwin's Point_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 761 94 36 4 15 2 1 0 813 Interior 150 98 3 2 0 0 0 0 153 East 112 93 6 5 2 2 0 0 120 Coast 187 89 13 6 4 4 1 0 209 N.W. 77 97 2 3 0 0 0 0 79

_Ear-Lobe Type_

Soldered Attached Free Total No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 80 10 531 65 202 25 813 Interior 47 31 74 48 32 21 153 East 3 3 85 71 32 27 120 Coast 9 4 141 67 59 28 209 N.W. 5 6 52 66 22 28 79

_Ear-Lobe Size_

Subm. + ++ +++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 176 22 457 56 178 22 2 0 813 Interior 49 32 66 43 38 25 0 0 153 East 16 13 76 63 27 23 1 1 120 Coast 31 15 123 59 55 26 0 0 209 N.W. 20 25 47 59 12 15 0 0 79

_Ear Protrusion_

Absent Subm. + ++ Total No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 2 0 262 32 463 57 86 11 813 Interior 1 1 47 31 90 59 15 10 153 East 0 0 31 26 77 64 12 10 120 Coast 1 0 75 36 114 55 19 9 209 N.W. 0 0 26 33 49 62 4 5 79

_Ear Slant_

Absent Subm. + Total No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 416 51 332 41 65 8 813 Interior 78 51 67 44 8 5 153 East 55 46 52 43 13 11 120 Coast 118 56 74 35 17 8 209 N.W. 38 48 39 49 2 3 79

The Fijian ear is a moderately distinctive appendage from a racial standpoint. The helix shows moderate development on the whole and is submedium otherwise except for a 9 per cent incidence of pronounced appearance. Regional variation is small.

The Darwin's point is noted in a number of cases: 4 per cent to a submedium degree and 2 per cent medium.

The ear lobe is somewhat distinctive with a 65 per cent incidence of the attached condition and 10 per cent soldered. The remaining 25 per cent is free. This distinctiveness is more marked among the interior groups where the soldered type of lobe increases to 31 percent.

Ear-lobe size is moderate in more than half the series, pronounced in 22 per cent, and submedium in 22 per cent. Small lobes are commoner in the interior province.

Moderate ear protrusion is the commonest form followed by submedium. Marked projection is recorded as 11 per cent.

Ear slant either is lacking or slight in most instances; the series is rather evenly divided between these two categories, the zero category having a small majority. Moderate slant is noted for 8 per cent.

BODY BUILD

_Body Build: Endomorph_

1 2 3 4 5 6 Total No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 260 32 334 42 126 15 46 6 33 4 12 1 811 Interior 49 32 66 43 26 17 5 3 6 4 1 1 153 East 30 25 54 45 21 18 5 4 8 7 1 1 119 Coast 77 37 82 39 28 13 10 5 8 4 3 1 209 N.W. 26 33 34 43 9 11 6 8 2 3 2 3 79

_Body Build: Mesomorph_

1 2 3 4 5 6 Total No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 1 {0.1} 2 {0.2} 33 4 131 16 227 28 419 52 813 Interior 0 0 1 1 11 7 27 18 41 27 73 48 153 East 1 1 0 0 2 2 14 12 38 32 65 54 120 Coast 0 0 0 0 9 4 29 14 67 32 104 50 209 N.W. 0 0 1 1 2 3 15 19 14 18 47 59 79

_Body Build: Ectomorph_

1 2 3 4 5 6 Total No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Fiji I 351 43 195 24 110 14 88 11 68 8 1 {0.1} 813 Interior 54 35 56 37 13 8 15 10 15 10 0 0 153 East 49 41 33 28 15 13 12 10 11 9 0 0 120 Coast 84 40 51 24 36 17 18 9 19 9 1 1 209 N.W. 39 49 19 24 11 14 6 8 4 5 0 0 79

Variations in body build have been expressed with the Sheldon method of somatotyping.[18] Accordingly, the Fijians are primarily and definitely mesomorphic, with endomorphy the second strongest component, and ectomorphy, third. About 80 per cent of the total series had a mesomorphic rating of 5 and 6 which leaves no doubt as to the prevailingly athletic physique. Endomorphy is seldom pronounced so that obesity may be described as no more than occasional. A pronounced linear build is likewise relatively infrequent.

The Fijian subgroups do not vary markedly from the over-all pattern.

SUMMARY

The preceding data may be summarized from three points of view. The first will emphasize the physical features that are common to most Fijians. At the outset it should be pointed out that a "typical" Fijian does not exist, except as a statistical abstraction. The racial composition of the Fijian is complex and far from being homogeneous. There is no doubt, from the physical and cultural evidence, as well as the geographical location, that Fijians are related to both Melanesians and Polynesians. The second point is to give a precise indication of these affinities with Melanesia and Polynesia. A third concern of this analysis is the geographical variability within Fiji. This consists of a regional breakdown of the Fijian data into interior, eastern, coastal, and northwestern divisions, in order to demonstrate some of the local variation of the Melanesian-Polynesian ingredients and their possible meaning.

_Body (pl. 1)._--In general size and appearance, the Fijian is tall and well proportioned. His body is fairly tall and well muscled, that is, predominately athletic in build. Obesity is relatively uncommon except in moderate degrees. This rather tall stature allies the Fijians more closely with the Polynesians. Shoulder, chest, and hip diameters also indicate that Fijians are generously endowed.

The Fijians who occupy the mountainous interior of the main island are less tall than the coastal and eastern people; they also have narrower shoulders, relatively deeper and narrower chests, whereas their arms and legs are somewhat shorter. The eastern Fijians are tallest of all subgroups.

_Skin Color._--Most Fijians have either medium- or dark-brown skin on the exposed facial surfaces. The more protected body areas show higher frequencies of medium brown and light brown. The Fijians are definitely less dark than the Melanesians but are darker, on the whole, than the Polynesians.

The interior hill tribes are darker than the eastern and coastal groups. The lightest average skin shade occurs in the east.

_Hair (pls. 6 and 7)._--In several respects the hair is the most consistent endowment of the Fijians. In nearly all instances it is black, frizzly, and coarse. The only departure from this condition is an occasional instance of dark brown and a few instances of rufous shade. Curly hair is a more common exception in the east. The coastal and northwestern people are nearer to the interior condition of frizzly hair. All in all, the hair form is definitely Melanesian. Hair length conforms to the general Melanesian condition, that is, intermediate between short Negroid and long Caucasiod or Mongoloid.

Considerable beard and body hair is common to Fijians (pls. 8 and 9). Moderate to pronounced beard is shown by nearly three-quarters of the total series, and body hair is even more prevelant. General hairiness is also exhibited by the Solomon Islanders and the Tongans in the comparative data. The interior tribes of Fiji are more hairy than the other groups. This prevelence of body and face hair seems to conform to parts of Melanesia where it may be regarded as an Australoid element. Its presence in the Tongan data does not seem to be representative of other Polynesians, who are generally described as more glabrous.

_Head (pl. 2)._--Moderate brachycephaly is the commonest head form of Fijians, although the total range is great. In this respect the Fijians resemble the broad-headed Tongans, and are quite distinct from the longer-headed Melanesians. The Fijian head, despite its general brachycephaly, is rather compressed in the temporal area and submedium in parietal elevation. The back of the cranium is characteristically flattened, a natural conformation as no deformation is practiced.

The interior mountain tribes of Fiji have narrower heads and lower cranial indices than do the coastal and eastern groups. The interior people also have lesser head heights and a higher breadth-height index.

_Forehead (pl. 10)._--Moderate to strongly developed supraorbital ridges are a common Fijian endowment. Similarly are low and sloping foreheads. These features have been observed in western Melanesia, where, like hairiness, they suggest Australoid of archaic Caucasoid elements.

_Face._--Broadness characterizes the Fijian face. Bizygomatic breadth locates them nearer to the Polynesians than to the narrower-faced Melanesians. Strongly developed malars are common, and they tend to project laterally more than frontally. Widest faces appear among the eastern people.

Bigonial and bicanine widths show that generous breadth includes the lower parts of the face, a condition born out by strong gonial angles.

Face length falls between the long-faced Tongans and the definitely shorter-faced Melanesians (pls. 3 and 4).

Some prognathism is common among Fijians, both total and mid-facial, but the condition is not universal nor pronounced. The eastern Fijians are the least prognathic (pl. 10).

_Eyes._--Dark brown is the prevailing eye color, although many subjects have medium-brown eyes. Eye folds are only occasional and eye-opening height is usually moderate. Slight eye obliquity is common, more so in the eastern sample.

_Nose (pl. 4)._--Great variability marks the nasal area. The commonest condition is a broad and moderately long nose. Medium nasion depression is frequent; the root is wide and moderately elevated. Bridge breadth is often pronounced and the nasal profile is straight to convex. The nasal tip is characteristically thickened and nasal wings are usually flaring. On the whole, there is a great deal of Melanesian in the Fijian nose; it is Negroid, but not pronouncedly. Those aspects of the nose which may be termed Negroid are commoner in the interior hill people and the northwest and least evident in the east.

_Lips (pl. 5)._--Thick and moderately everted lips occur in nearly half the series. This Negroid combination is more manifest in the interior and least in the east. Integumental lips tend to be heavy.

_Teeth._--The condition of the teeth is generally excellent. Most Fijians have broad, roomy jaws that permit complete and uncrowded tooth development. Dental caries are very infrequent. A rather high incidence of edge-to-edge bite is interesting.

_Ears (pl. 5)._--The ears are usually moderate in length and tend to protrude. Ear lobes are commonly large and are more often attached or soldered than free.

CONCLUSIONS

On the whole the Fijians are predominately Melanesian but with numerous Polynesian affinities that vary with locality. The Melanesian qualities are in part Negroid or Negritoid and in part Australoid. The Negroid resemblances are best illustrated by frizzly black hair, broad noses with depressed nasion and flaring nostrils, thick lips, and dark pigmentation (pls. 11 and 12). Australoid elements are general hairiness, strong brow ridges, low, sloping foreheads, compressed parietal and temporal areas, and some prognathism (pl. 13). The presence of Australoid suggestions need not mean that they come from Australia, but that they form a part of the Melanesian make-up. This interpretation of the Melanesians as a hybrid people conforms with similar designations by such students as Birdsell[19] and Hooton.[20] Polynesian influence in Fiji is most clearly demonstrated by lighter pigmentation, tall and muscular body build, moderate brachycephaly, broad faces and jaws, high and fairly long noses and strong chins. I found much the same resemblances between Fijians and Polynesians as did Howells;[21] however, in my comparisons the Polynesian similarities are outweighed and outnumbered by a greater array of Melanesian characters. The essential Melanesian character of the Fijian population is further demonstrated by recent blood-analysis comparisons; the conclusions of Simmons _et al._, identify the Fijians as Melanesian.[22]

The Fijians who live in the interior of Viti Levu show the most frequent Melanesian traits (pls. 11 and 14). These people are shorter, have narrower shoulders and chests; their heads are narrower and lower vaulted; they have broader noses, thicker lips, are hairier, and have darker skins. This condition, occurring as it does in the mountainous interior, which may be regarded as a refuge area, supports the theory that the Melanesian is the earlier component in Fiji.

The eastern Fijians stand in considerable contrast to the interior tribes and are the most Polynesian in appearance (pl. 15). They have lighter skins, greater stature, and heavier musculature. Their heads are broader, as are their faces and jaws; their noses are larger, narrower, and higher bridged, and their chins are more pronounced.

The coastal sample might be called intermediate or a more even blend of Melanesian and Polynesian.

The northwestern people resemble the coastal tribes. This means they show fewer departures in either a Melanesian or Polynesian direction. This also means they do not tell us whether the legendary ancestors, who are supposed to have first landed in Fiji on the northwest coast of Viti Levu,[23] were Melanesian or Polynesian. These data may mean one of three things: (1) the Fijian tradition of a landing at this place eight or ten generations ago is groundless, (2) the immigration did take place but whatever racial traits predominated, whether Melanesian or Polynesian, have been homogenized and obscured by subsequent intermixture and by movements back and forth on Viti Levu, (3) the landing did occur but the ancestors were already a Melanesian-Polynesian blend when they arrived.

LITERATURE CITED

Birdsell. J. B. 1948. Racial Origin of the Extinct Tasmanians. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, Tasmania, Vol. II, No. 3.

Churchill, W. 1911. The Polynesian Wanderings. Carnegie Institute of Washington, Publ. No. 134, Washington.

Derrick, R. A. 1951. History of Fiji. Printing and Stationery Dept., Suva, Fiji.

Fornander, A. 1878. The Polynesian Race. London.

Hocart, A. M. 1929. Lau Islands, Fiji. Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Bull. 62, Honolulu.

Hooton, E. A. 1946. Up From the Ape. Macmillan Co., New York.

Howells. W. W. 1933. Anthropometry and Blood Types in Fiji and the Solomon Islands. American Museum of Natural History. Anthropological Papers, Vol. 33, Pt. 4.

Roth, G. K. 1953. The Fijian Way of Life. Oxford University Press, London.

Simmon, R. T., J. J. Graydon, and G. Barnes 1945. The Medical Journal of Australia, May 26.

Sullivan, L. R. 1922. A Contribution to Tongan Somotology. Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Vol. VIII, No. 4.

Thomson, B. 1908. The Fijians: A Study of the Decay of Custom. Wm. Heinemann, London.

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