Man, Past and Present - Agustus Henry Keane, A. Hingston Quiggin, Alfred Court Haddon (most popular novels txt) 📗

Lapouge's Alpine type, but all except the Ossets speaking an amazing number of non-Aryan stock languages. Philologists have been for some time hard at work in this linguistic wilderness, the "Mountain of Languages" of the early Arabo-Persian writers, without greatly reducing the number of independent groups, while many idioms traceable to a single stem still differ so profoundly from each other that they are practically so many stocks. Of the really distinct families the more important are:--the Kartweli of the southern slopes, comprising the historical Georgian, cultivated since the 5th century, the Mingrelian, Imeritian, Laz of Lazistan, and many others; the Cherkess(Circassian), the Abkhasian and Kabard of the Western and Central Caucasus; the Chechenz and Lesghian, the Andi, the Ude, the Kubachi and Duodez of Daghestan, i.e. the Eastern Caucasus. Where did this babel of tongues come from? We know that 2500 years ago the relations were much the same as at present, because the Greeks speak of scores of languages current in the port of Dioscurias in their time. If therefore the aborigines are the "sweepings of the plains," they must have been swept up long before the historic period. Did they bring their different languages with them, or were these specialised in their new upland homes? The consideration that an open environment makes for uniformity, secluded upland valleys for diversity, seems greatly to favour the latter assumption, which is further strengthened by the now established fact that, although there are few traces of the Palaeolithic epoch, the Caucasus was somewhat thickly inhabited in the New Stone Age.

Crossing into Irania we are at once confronted with totally different conditions. For the ethnologist this region comprises, besides the tableland between the Tigris and Indus, both slopes of the Hindu-Kush, and the Pamir, with the uplands bounded south and north by the upper courses of the Oxus and the Sir-darya. Overlooking later Mongolo-Turki encroachments, a general survey will, I think, show that from the earliest times the whole of this region has formed part of the Caucasic domain; that the bulk of the indigenous populations must have belonged to the dark, round-headed Alpine type; that these, still found in compact masses in many places, were apparently conquered, but certainly Aryanised in speech, in very remote prehistoric times by long-headed blond Aryans of the IRANIC and GALCHIC branches, who arrived in large numbers from the contiguous Eurasian steppe, mingled generally with the brachy aborigines, but also kept aloof in several districts, where they still survive with more or less modified proto-Aryan features. Thus we are at once struck by the remarkable fact that absolute uniformity of speech, always apart from late Mongol intrusions, has prevailed during the historic period throughout Irania, which has been in this respect as completely Aryanised as Europe itself; and further, that all current Aryan tongues, with perhaps one trifling exception[1316], are members either of the Iranic or the Galchic branch of the family. Both Iranic and Galchic are thus rather linguistic than ethnic terms, and so true is this that a philologist always knows what is meant by an Iranic language, while the anthropologist is unable to define or form any clear conception of an Iranian, who may be either of long-headed Nordic or round-headed Alpine type. Here confusion may be avoided by reserving the historic name of PERSIAN[1317] for the former, and comprising all the Alpines under the also time-honoured though less known name of TAJIKS.

Khanikoff has shown that these Tajiks constitute the primitive element in ancient Iran. To the true Persians of the west, as well as to the kindred Afghans in the east, both of dolicho type, the term is rarely applied. But almost everywhere the sedentary and agricultural aborigines are called Tajiks, and are spoken of as Parsivan, that is, Parsizaban[1318], "of Persian speech," or else Dihkan[1318], that is, "Peasants," all being mainly husbandmen "of Persian race and tongue[1319]." They form endless tribal, or at least social, groups, who keep somewhat aloof from their proto-Aryan conquerors, so that, in the east especially, the ethnic fusion is far from complete, the various sections of the community being still rather juxtaposed than fused in a single nationality. When to these primeval differences is added the tribal system still surviving in full vigour amongst the intruding Afghans themselves, we see how impossible it is yet to speak of an Afghan nation, but only of heterogeneous masses loosely held together by the paramount tribe--at present the Durani of Kabul.

The Tajiks are first mentioned by Herodotus, whose Dadikes[1320] are identified by Hammer and Khanikoff with them[1321]. They are now commonly divided into Lowland, and Highland or Hill Tajiks, of whom the former were always Parsivan, whereas the Hill Tajiks did not originally speak Persian at all, but, as many still do, an independent sister language called Galchic, current in the Pamir, Zerafshan and Sir-darya uplands, and holding a somewhat intermediate position between the Iranic and Indic branches.

This term Galcha, although new to science, has long been applied to the Aryans of the Pamir valleys, being identified with the Calcienses populi of the lay Jesuit Benedict Goez, who crossed the Pamir in 1603, and describes them as "of light hair and beard like the Belgians." Meyendorff also calls those of Zerafshan "Eastern Persians, Galchi, Galchas." The word has been explained to mean "the hungry raven who has withdrawn to the mountains," probably in reference to those Lowland Tajiks who took refuge in the uplands from the predatory Turki hordes. But it is no doubt the Persian galcha, a peasant or clown, then a vagabond, etc., whence galchagi, rudeness.

As shown by J. Biddulph[1322], the tribes of Galchic speech range over both slopes of the Hindu-Kush, comprising the natives of Sarakol, Wakhan, Shignan, Munjan (with the Yidoks of the Upper Lud-kho or Chitral river), Sanglich, and Ishkashim. To these he is inclined to add the Pakhpus and the Shakshus of the Upper Yarkand-darya, as well as those of the Kocha valley, with whom must now be included the Zerafshan Galchas (Maghians, Kshtuts, Falghars, Machas and Fans), but not the Yagnobis. All these form also one ethnic group of Alpine type, with whom on linguistic grounds Biddulph also includes two other groups, the Khos of Chitral with the Siah Posh of Kafiristan, and the Shins (Dards), Gors, Chilasi and other small tribes of the Upper Indus and side valleys, all these apparently being long-heads of the blond Aryan type. Keeping this distinction in view, Biddulph's valuable treatise on the Hindu-Kush populations may be followed with safety. He traces the Galcha idioms generally to the old Baktrian (East Persia, so-called "Zend Avesta"), the Shin however leaning closely to Sanskrit, while Khowar, the speech of the Chitrali (Khos), is intermediate between Baktrian and Sanskrit. But differences prevail on these details, which will give occupation to philologists for some time to come.

Speaking generally, all the Galchas of the northern slopes (most of Biddulph's first group) are physically connected with all the other Lowland and Hill Tajiks, with whom should also probably be included Elphinstone's[1323] southern Tajiks dwelling south of the Hindu-Kush (Kohistani, Berraki, Purmuli or Fermuli, Sirdehi, Sistani, and others scattered over Afghanistan and northern Baluchistan). Their type is pronouncedly Alpine, so much so that they have been spoken of by French anthropologists as "those belated Savoyards of Kohistan[1324]." De Ujfalvy, who has studied them carefully, describes them as tall, brown or bronzed and even white, with ruddy cheeks recalling the Englishman, black or chestnut hair, sometimes red and even light, smooth, wavy or curly, full beard, brown, ruddy or blond (he met two brothers near Penjakend with hair "blanc comme du lin"); brown, blue, or grey eyes, never oblique, long, shapely nose slightly curved, thin, straight lips, oval face, stout, vigorous frame, and round heads with cephalic index as high as 86.50. This description, which is confirmed by Bonvalot and other recent observers, applies to the Darwazi, Wakhi, Badakhshi, and in fact all the groups, so that we have beyond all doubt an eastern extension of the Alpine brachycephalic zone through Armenia and the Bakhtiari uplands to the Central Asiatic highlands, a conclusion confirmed by the explorations of M. A. Stein in Chinese Turkestan and the Pamirs (1900-8)[1325]. Indeed this Asiatic extension of the Alpine type inclines v. Luschan[1326] to regard the European branch as one offshoot, and the high and narrow ("Hittite") nosed type as another, or rather as a specialised group, of which the Armenians, Persians, Druses, and other sectarian groups of Syria and Asia Minor represent the purest examples. According to his summary of this complicated region "All Western Asia was originally inhabited by a homogeneous melanochroic race, with extreme hypsi-brachycephaly and with a 'Hittite' nose. About 4000 B.C. began a Semitic invasion from the south-east, probably from Arabia, by people looking like the modern Bedawy. Two thousand years later commenced a second invasion, this time from the north-west, by xanthrochroous and long-headed tribes like the modern Kurds, half savage, and in some way or other, perhaps, connected with the historic Harri, Amorites, Tamehu and Galatians[1327]."

But the eventful drama is not yet closed. Arrested perhaps for a time by the barrier of the Hindu-Kush and Suliman ranges, proto-Aryan conquerors burst at last, probably through the Kabul river gorges, on to the plains of India, and thereby added another world to the Caucasic domain. Here they were brought face to face with new conditions, which gave rise to fresh changes and adaptations resulting in the present ethnical relations in the peninsula. There is good reason to think that in this region the leavening Aryan element never was numerous, while even on their first arrival the Aryan invaders found the land already somewhat thickly peopled by the aborigines[1328].

The marked linguistic and ethnical differences between Eastern and Western Hindustan have given rise to the theory of two separate streams of immigration, perhaps continued over many centuries[1329]. The earlier entered from the north-west, bringing their herds and families with them, whose descendants are the homogeneous and handsome populations of the Punjab and Rajputana. Later swarms entered by way of the difficult passes of Gilgit and Chitral, a route which made it impossible for their women to accompany them. "Here they came in contact with the Dravidians; here by the stress of that contact caste was evolved; here the Vedas were composed and the whole fantastic structure of orthodox ritual and usage was built up.... The men of the stronger race took to themselves women of the weaker, and from these unions was evolved the mixed type which we find in Hindustan and Bihar[1330]."

An attempt to analyse the complicated ethnic elements contained in the vast area of India was made by H. H. Risley[1331], who recognised seven types, his classification being based on theories of origin.

The TURKO-IRANIAN type, including the Baloch, Brahui, and Afghans of Baluchistan and the North-West Frontier Provinces, all Muhammadans, with broad head, long prominent nose, abundant hair, fair complexion and tall stature. INDO-ARYAN type in the Punjab, Rajputana and Kashmir, with its most conspicuous members the Rajputs, Khatri and Jats in all but colour closely resembling the European type and showing little difference between upper and lower social strata. Their characteristics are tall stature, fair complexion, plentiful hair on face, long head, and narrow prominent nose. ARYO-DRAVIDIAN or Hindustani type in the United Provinces, parts of Rajputana, Bihar, and Ceylon, with lower stature, variable complexion, longish head, and a nose index exactly corresponding to social station. SCYTHO-DRAVIDIAN of Western India, including the Maratha Brahmans, Kunbi, and Coorgs, of medium stature, fair complexion, broad head with scanty hair on the face, and a fine nose. DRAVIDIAN, generally regarded as representing the indigenous element. The characteristics are fairly uniform from Ceylon to the Ganges valley throughout Madras, Hyderabad, the Central Provinces, Central India and Chota Nagpur, and the name is now used to include the mass of the population unaffected by foreign (Aryan, Scythian, Mongoloid) immigration. The Nairs of Malabar and the Santal of Chota Nagpur are typical representatives. The stature is short,