556 MAN: PAST AND PRESENT. [CHAP. 



safety. He traces the Galcha idioms generally to the old Baktrian 

 (East Persian, so-called "Zend Avesta"), the Shin however lean- 

 ing 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 con- 

 nected with all the other Lowland and Hill Tajiks, 

 with whom should also probably be included 

 Elphinstone's 1 southern Tajiks dwelling south of the Hindu-Kush 

 (Kohistani, Berrakis, Purmuli or Fermuli, Sirdehis, 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-." 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 brachy zone through 

 Armenia and the Bakhtiari uplands to the Central Asiatic high- 

 lands. In this description we also see obvious traces of the blond 

 type grafted on these pre- Aryan Neolithic Tajiks by their Iranic 

 Aryan conquerors, just as the Kelts and other pre-Aryan round- 

 heads were Aryanised farther west. 



We can now, perhaps for the first time, grasp the picture 

 as a whole, and realise the marvellous uniformity of the ethnical 

 and linguistic relations of two great sections of mankind Linne's 



1 An Account of the Kingdom of Caubtil, 1815. 



2 "Ces Savoyards attardes du Kohistan" (Ujfalvy, Les Aryeus etc.). 



