Abstract
Racial Affinities in Ontong Java. Ontong Java, which is situated to the north-east of the Solomon Islands, about 150 miles from Ysabel, has usually been regarded as one of the Polynesian outliers in Melanesia among others being Tikopia, Sikiana and Rennel Island. The significance attached to these outliers is that they are thought to represent colonies dropped by the Polynesians in the course of migration from south-eastern Asia to their final destination in the Pacific. Dr. H. L. Shapiro, having this theory in view, has recently examined a series of measurements of the inhabitants of Ontong Java made by Dr. lan Hogbin. The results of this examination are published in Oceania, 3, No. 4. The first comparison made was with the Polynesian series in the studies published by the Bernice P. Bishop Museum. This showed that on the physical side there is no support for the hypothesis of a Polynesian origin, nor did a comparison with the Fijians and the coastal New Hebrideans from Eromanga and Tanna, who represent Melanesian strains crossed with Polynesian, support the view that the original Polynesian strain of the Ontong Javanese had been blended with Melanesian characteristics. Comparison with other groups in turn led to the conclusion that the affinities of Ontong Java are with Micronesia. The Caroline Islanders in particular revealed considerable evidence of kinship. On the other hand, Dr. Hogbin's examination of social structure has revealed a number of Polynesian forms; but it has been pointed out that their language is not an archaic form of a Polynesian language, as might have been expected had they been an early colony. It seems rather to be modern Samoan or Maori. The indubitable evidence of physical characters suggests a revaluation of the cultural traits to which a Polynesian character has been attributed.
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Research Items. Nature 132, 899–901 (1933). https://doi.org/10.1038/132899a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/132899a0