The document provides an anthropological background of the people of Bangladesh. It discusses the various races that migrated to the region over time, including Negritos, Proto-Australoids, Mongoloids, Mediterraneans, Western Brachycephals, and Nordic Aryans. It describes the physical characteristics of each race and notes they intermixed, making the Bangladeshi people a mixed race. The racial characteristics of modern Bangladeshis are said to include short or middle stature, long and round skulls, black skin, and wide noses, reflecting the genetic contributions of the diverse ancestral populations.

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ANTHROPOLOGICAL BACKGROUND
OF
BANGLADESH

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What is Anthropology
Anthropology is the systematic study of humanity, with the goal of
understanding our evolutionary origins, our distinctiveness as a species, and
the great diversity in our forms of social existence across the world and
through time. The focus of Anthropology is on understanding both our shared
humanity and diversity, and engaging with diverse ways of being in the world.
Bangali Nation Many anthropologists believe that the Bangali nation makes a vastly
mixed race and one of the oldest groups of humans inhabiting this region. Many
races of the world had intruded into Bengal, many also went away, but they left
behind marks of their stay here. The existence of numerous and varied ethnic groups
can be traced in the mixed blood of the Bangalis. These ancient people lived at
various places of Bengal by occupying different habitats (Janapadas) and got mixed
with each other over the centuries.The anthropologists opine that branches from all
the four principal ethnic groups of the world came to Bengal at one time or
another.These races are: Negroid, Mongoloid, and australoids. It is assumed that
among the ancient inhabitants of Bangladesh, the speakers of austric language were
the majority.
Background of Bangladeshi people

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Races of Bangladesh :
1 Negrito
Mediterranean
Proto-Australoids or Austrics
Mongoloids
4
6
5
2
3
Western Brachycephals
Nordic Aryans

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Skin color Chocolate to jet black
Hair Woolly or frizzy
Nose Fleshy,flat and wide
Ears Small
Lips Bulbous
Jaw Heavy
Characteristics:
Negrito:
The Negritos or the Brachycephalic (broad headed) from
Africa were the earliest people to have come to this
subcontinent. 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.

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Proto-Australoids or Austric:
Australoids were an ethnic group of people in ancient Bengal.
Anthropologists considered them as the early Australian people.
Australoids are also known as Austric or Austro-Asian. In ancient
literature these people had been mentioned as the nishad. Scholars
stated that the early habitants of the Australoids were in from central
India to South India and also from Shinghal to Australia. In course of
time a part of this ethnic group left from their own habitats and
migrated to ancient Bengal. Probably Australoids came into Bengal
after the ancient Bang and Negrito people. They are considered as
the ancestors of the Kol, Bheel, santal, Bhumees, munda, Banshforh,
Malpahari and other ethnic groups. [ABM Shamsuddin Ahmed]
Skin color Black
Hair wavy hair
Head long headed
Arms & Legs long and spindly
Characteristics:
Brow ridge Pronounced

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Mongoloid:
A member of the racial classification of humanity composed
of peoples native to North Asia, Central Asia, East Asia,
Pacific Oceania, and the Americas, as well as their diaspora
in other parts of the world.These people are found in the
North eastern part of India in the states of Assam, Nagaland,
Mizoram, Meghalaya,Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and
Tripura. They are also found in Northern parts of West
Bengal, Sikkim, and Ladakh.Generally they are people with
yellow complexion, oblique eyes, high cheekbones, sparse
hair and and medium hieght .
Skin colour Brownish to yellow
Hair Black and straight
Nose Flat
Characteristics:

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Mediterraean or Dravidian:
The present people of the Indian subcontinent, including
the Dravidians, are of a mixed genetic origin and have
ancestry from indigenous South Asian Hunter Gatherers,
Neolithic west Asian farmers from Iran and Steppe
Yamnaya pastoralists.They have been believed to come
before the Aryans. They have different sub‐groups like
the Paleo‐Mediterranean,the true Mediterranean, and the
Oriental Mediterranean.They appear to be people of the
same stock as the peoples of Asia Minor and Crete and
pre-Hellenic Aegean's of Greece. They are reputed to
have built up the city civilization of the Indus valley,
whose remains have been found at Mohenjo-daro and
Harappa and other Indus cities.

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Western Brachycephals:
Western Brachycephals: This group is characterized by
populations with a light brown skin colour, brachycephalic
head form, long nose and tall stature. Populations
representing these groups are Nagar Brahmans of Gujarat to
people from Coorg and people inhabiting the western coastal
region.
Skin colour Light brown
Nose Long
Body Tall stature
Characteristics:

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Nordics or The Indro-Aryans:
This group was the last one 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.Indo-Aryan peoples are a diverse collection of Indo-
European peoples speaking Indo-Aryan languages in the
Indian subcontinent. Historically, Indo-Aryans were the Indo-
European pastoralists who migrated from Central Asia into
South Asia and introduced Proto-Indo-Aryan language.

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Racial Characteristics of the people of Bangladesh:
Stature Short and middle stature
Size of the Skull Ling and round
Skin colour Black
Nose Wide

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