The Natural History of the Varieties of ManLatham, R. G. (Robert Gordon)
Science
The Natural History of the Varieties of Man
Latham, R. G. (Robert Gordon)
Ethnology
If we call them Tibetan, or Burmese, they are equally remarkable for
this peculiarity.
Taking their physical appearance as a test, it is the Garo that
seem the likeliest to exhibit a transition between the type already
illustrated, and the type of the aborigines of Hindostan, _supposing
such a transition to exist_.
Taking their language into consideration, something of the same
intermediate character is, perhaps, to be found. It has been referred
to each class; by some to the monosyllabic tongues of Tibet, or the
Burmese empire; by others to the Indian group of dialects and languages.
The first description of the Garo is to be found in the Asiatic
Researches. Here it is where they are described as approaching the
Negro type. Endued with great physical strength, at least as compared
with the Bengali, they are pagans and savages: their manners, as stated
above, agreeing in many points with those of the Kukis.
It is, however, by their language that their ethnographical position
will best be determined.
The present writer, who had not then seen Mr. Brown's Vocabularies,
placed this, in 1844, in the Tibetan division; being satisfied of its
monosyllabic character.
Mr. Brown's Vocabularies confirm this view (so far as it goes) of the
monosyllabic character of the Garo; and I think that the following
table--Mr. Brown's also--shewing the per-centage of words in any two
languages, does the same.
+-----------+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
| |K |S |A'|A'|M |B |K |S |J |G |M |S |
| |h |i |k |b |i |u |a |i |i |á |a |o |
| |a |a |á |o |s |r |r |n |l |r |n |n |
| |m |m | |r |h |m |e |g |í |o |i |g |
| |t |e | | |i |e |n |p | | |p |p |
| |í |s | | |m |s | |h | | |u |ú |
| | |e | | |í |e | |o | | |r | |
| | | | | | | | | | | |í | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
+-----------+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
|Khamti | |92| 1| 1| 5| 8| 8| 3|10| 3| 3| 1|
|Siamese |92| | 0| 0| 3| 6| 8| 3|10| 1| 3| 1|
|A'bor | 1| 0| |47|20|17|12|15|15| 5|11| 3|
|A'ká | 1| 0|47| |20|11|10|18|11| 6|15| 6|
|Mishimi | 5| 3|20|20| |10|10|10|13|10|11| 0|
|Burmese | 8| 6|17|11|10| |23|23|26|12|16| 8|
|Karien | 8| 8|12|10|10|23| |17|21| 8|15|10|
|Singpho | 3| 3|15|18|10|23|17| |70|16|25|10|
|Jili |10|10|15|11|13|26|21|70| |22|16|10|
|Garo | 3| 1| 5| 6|10|12| 8|16|22| |10| 5|
|Manipurí | 3| 3|11|15|11|16|15|25|16|10| |21|
|Songpú | 1| 1| 3| 6| 0| 8|10|10|10| 5|21| |
|Kapwi | 0| 0|10|11|11|20|15|18|21| 6|41|35|
|Koreng | 1| 1| 3| 5| 0| 6| 8|11|13| 5|18|50|
|Maram | 0| 0| 8| 8| 3|11|12|11|11| 8|25|53|
|Champhung | 0| 0| 8| 6| 5|11| 4|13|11| 5|28|20|
|Luhuppa | 0| 0| 8| 8| 6|11|12|15|18| 8|31|23|
|N. Tángkhul| 0| 0| 5| 8| 8|10| 8|13|20|13|28|15|
|C.
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