On the whole the Fijians are predominately Melanesian but with numerous
Polynesian affinities that vary with locality. The Melanesian qualities
are in part Negroid or Negritoid and in part Australoid. The Negroid
resemblances are best illustrated by frizzly black hair, broad noses
with depressed nasion and flaring nostrils, thick lips, and dark
pigmentation (pls. 11 and 12). Australoid elements are general
hairiness, strong brow ridges, low, sloping foreheads, compressed
parietal and temporal areas, and some prognathism (pl. 13). The presence
of Australoid suggestions need not mean that they come from Australia,
but that they form a part of the Melanesian make-up. This interpretation
of the Melanesians as a hybrid people conforms with similar designations
by such students as Birdsell[19] and Hooton.[20] Polynesian influence in
Fiji is most clearly demonstrated by lighter pigmentation, tall and
muscular body build, moderate brachycephaly, broad faces and jaws, high
and fairly long noses and strong chins. I found much the same
resemblances between Fijians and Polynesians as did Howells;[21]
however, in my comparisons the Polynesian similarities are outweighed
and outnumbered by a greater array of Melanesian characters. The
essential Melanesian character of the Fijian population is further
demonstrated by recent blood-analysis comparisons; the conclusions of
Simmons _et al._, identify the Fijians as Melanesian.[22]
The Fijians who live in the interior of Viti Levu show the most frequent
Melanesian traits (pls. 11 and 14). These people are shorter, have
narrower shoulders and chests; their heads are narrower and lower
vaulted; they have broader noses, thicker lips, are hairier, and have
darker skins. This condition, occurring as it does in the mountainous
interior, which may be regarded as a refuge area, supports the theory
that the Melanesian is the earlier component in Fiji.
The eastern Fijians stand in considerable contrast to the interior
tribes and are the most Polynesian in appearance (pl. 15). They have
lighter skins, greater stature, and heavier musculature. Their heads are
broader, as are their faces and jaws; their noses are larger, narrower,
and higher bridged, and their chins are more pronounced.
The coastal sample might be called intermediate or a more even blend of
Melanesian and Polynesian.
The northwestern people resemble the coastal tribes. This means they
show fewer departures in either a Melanesian or Polynesian direction.
This also means they do not tell us whether the legendary ancestors, who
are supposed to have first landed in Fiji on the northwest coast of Viti
Levu,[23] were Melanesian or Polynesian. These data may mean one of
three things: (1) the Fijian tradition of a landing at this place eight
or ten generations ago is groundless, (2) the immigration did take place
but whatever racial traits predominated, whether Melanesian or
Polynesian, have been homogenized and obscured by subsequent
intermixture and by movements back and forth on Viti Levu, (3) the
landing did occur but the ancestors were already a
Melanesian-Polynesian blend when they arrived.