On the Origin of the Armenians (in the Light of Non-metric Cranial Traits Data)

Abstract

The problem of the origin of the Armenian ethnicity has been highlighted in numerous scholarly publications. Many archaeological data corroborate the cultural continuity between the current and ancient populations of Armenia extending at least down to the period of early Iron Age. 1 In effect, the formation of the physical type of Armenians had been deeply rooted in a grey antiquity and is closely associated with the formation of the Armenoid anthropological type embracing many populations of the Near East and the Caucasus, as well as the majority of the Armenian nation. The Armenoid type is characterised by a slightly wavy hair, a developed tertiary integument, with abundant facial hair, dark complexion, dark eyes and hair, a peculiarly shaped nose with a dropped tip, wide and elevated nose wings, moderately thick lips, narrowly cut eyes, medium-size rather elevated face, brachycranial, very elevated skull, often with a very inclined forehead and a flat back of the head. The origin of the Armenoid type is very interesting with regard to complicated ethno-genetic processes within the Near East and the Caucasus, as well as to the historical antiquity of the peoples of these regions and their proximity to the centres of the world civilisation. According to Debec: ... there can be no serious ethno-genetic study of the European and Near Eastern peoples that would skip references to the peoples of the Caucasus.2