Page:American Anthropologist NS vol. 22.djvu/254

 242" AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGIST [N. s,, 22, 1920

centage is somewhat lower than that found by Rossi in miscellaneous collections of Asiatic and Papuasian crania.

When we consider the frequency in local groups the distribution becomes significant. All of the groups of high frequency in Table I are in the southwestern United States and Mexico. However it was not found in the crania of the pueblo peoples of New Mexico, Arizona, or Colorado. The distribution follows quite closely the distribution of the linguistic stocks tentatively grouped together as Uto-Aztecan. The crania in which it occurred with, greatest frequency were moderately elongated with a cranial index averaging about 76 to 78. There is some overlapping in the distribution, notably in the case of the Otomi and Tarascan groups. This could undoubtedly be explained by contact and intermixture. On the other hand the fossa was not found among the Yaqui or Zacateco crania. In a few cases our material is inadequate to serve as a basis for valid deductions. This is true especially in the case of the Papago, Clear Creek, Arizona, and Otomi material. While our material as a whole may be taken as a fair sample in many areas, it is particularly deficient in the Plains area, Southeastern area, Plateau area, and in eastern and southern South America.

On the basis of the material at hand it seems that the frequent occurrency of the fossa pharyngea is limited to that area of North America which is or was the* home of the Uto-Aztecan linguistic stock. The Basket-makers belong undoubtedly to the physical type which predominates in the Uto-Aztecan speaking peoples. It seems fair to assume that they also spoke some related dialect. From the data at hand we can only speak of southern affinities. In order to determine northern relationships it would be necessary to examine Plateau and Plains material. Such material is not at present at my disposal. The point I wish to make is that such characters as the fossa pharyngea have a similar distribution to that of the cephalic index, stature, etc., and are of equal value in determining the relationship of local groups. I hope that other collections of American crania may be studied for the presence or absence of the fossa pharyngea.

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YORK CITY

�� �