A NEW THEORY OF POLYNESIAN ORIGINS. 



By ROLAND B. DIXON, Ph.D. 



(Read April 22, ig20.) 



The problem of the origin and racial affiliations of the Poly- 

 nesian peoples has engaged the attention of anthropologists for 

 many years. Struck by their contrast with the black-skinned and 

 lower cultured populations of Melanesia and Australia, even the 

 earlier explorers began to speculate as to the provenance of this 

 attractive and interesting people, and suggestions of an affiliation 

 with the Malayan peoples of Indonesia were soon made. The 

 recognition of the linguistic relationship of the various Polynesian 

 languages to the Malay helped greatly to strengthen this view, and 

 when the Micronesian and many of the Melanesian languages were 

 also found to belong to the Malayo-Polynesian family, the founda- 

 tions of the current theory of Polynesian origins were laid. This 

 theory accounts for the Polynesian people as a branch of the Malay 

 which, breaking away from the parent stock, migrated eastward 

 through Melanesia to the islands further out in the Pacific. The 

 study of the physical types among the Polynesians and of their cul- 

 ture seemed to fortify this general conception. Such Melanesian 

 features as were recognized came to be regarded as due to accul- 

 turation and mixture with Melanesian peoples in the course of the 

 eastward migration, for the Polynesians were usually held to have 

 been the first occupants of the islands in which they were found. 

 The hypothesis of an earlier stratum of Melanesians throughout the 

 Polynesian area was indeed advanced, but in general met with little 

 approval. 



As further studies were made on the physical side, it began to 

 be seen that the Polynesians were really far from being a uniform 

 type. The presence of several types was recognized, and various 

 explanations offered to account for the diversity. Some regarded 



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PROG. AMER. PHIL. SOC, VOL. LIX, Q, AUGUST 20, I92O. 



