Dermatoglyphic relationships among South Amerindian populations.
The biological affinities among 17 South American aboriginal populations are examined by means of a multivariate analysis of their dermatoglyphic finger patterns. Different analytical methods [cluster analysis, nonmetric multidimensional scaling, and multiresponse permutation procedure (based on distances derived from principal components analysis)] reveal interpopulation relationships consistent with Loukotka's language classification. The paleo-American tribes from the Gran Chaco and Brazil share a high incidence of whorls as a distinctive feature. The Andean and tropical forest groups, which present a greater prevalence of arches and ulnar loops, appear to be closely related to each other, suggesting a more recent common origin and/or substantial gene flow between them.
Demarchi
D A
DA
Cátedra de Antropología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, National University of Córdoba, Argentina.
Marcellino
A J
AJ
D001118:Argentina; D001938:Brazil; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003878:Dermatoglyphics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007199:Indians, South American / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012494:Sampling Studies; D013020:South America