The History of Creation, Vol. 2 (of 2): Or the Development of the Earth and its Inhabitants by the Action of Natural CausesHaeckel, Ernst
Science
The History of Creation, Vol. 2 (of 2): Or the Development of the Earth and its Inhabitants by the Action of Natural Causes
Haeckel, Ernst
Evolution; Heredity; Human beings -- Origin
The lowest stage of all straight-haired men, and on the whole perhaps of
all the still living human species, is occupied by the _Australian_, or
_Austral-negro_ (Homo Australis). This species seems to be exclusively
confined to the large island of Australia; it resembles the genuine
African Negro by its black or brownish black hair, and the offensive
smell of the skin, by its very slanting teeth and long-headed form of
skull, the receding forehead, broad nose, protruding lips, and also by
the entire absence of calves. On the other hand Australians differ from
genuine Negroes as well as from their nearest neighbours the Papuans, by
the much weaker and more delicate structure of their bones, and more
especially by the formation of the hair of their heads, which is not
woolly and frizzled, but either quite lank or only slightly curled. The
very low stage of bodily and mental development of the Australian is
perhaps not altogether original, but has arisen by degeneration, that
is, by adaptation to the very unfavourable conditions of existence in
Australia. They probably immigrated to their present home from the north
or north-west, as a very early offshoot of the Euthycomi. They are
probably more closely related to the Dravidas, and hence to the
Euplocomi, than the other Euthycomi. The very peculiar language of the
Australians is broken up into numerous small branches, which are grouped
into a northern and a southern class.
The _Malay_ (Homo Malayus), the brown race of ethnographers, although
not a large species, is important in regard to its genealogy. An extinct
south Asiatic human species, very closely related to the Malays of the
present day, must probably be looked upon as the common primary form of
this and the following higher human species. We will call this
hypothetical primary species, Primæval Malays, or Promalays. The Malays
of the present day are divided into two widely dispersed races, the
_Sundanesians_, who inhabit Malacca, the Sunda Islands (Sumatra, Java,
Borneo, etc.) and the Philippine Islands, and the _Polynesians_, who are
dispersed over the greater portion of the Pacific Archipelago. The
northern boundary of their wide tract of distribution is formed on the
east by the Sandwich Islands (Hawai), and on the west by the Marian
Islands (Ladrones); the southern boundary on the east is formed by the
Mangareva Archipelago, and on the west by New Zealand. The inhabitants
of Madagascar are an especial branch of Sundanesians who have been
driven to the far west. This wide pelagic distribution of the Malays is
explained by their partiality for nautical life. Their primæval home is
the south-eastern portion of the Asiatic continent, from whence they
spread to the east and south, and drove the Papuans before them. The
Malays, in the formation of body, are nearest akin to the Mongols, but
are also nearly allied to the curly-haired Mediterranese. They are
generally short-headed, more rarely medium-headed, and very rarely
long-headed.
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