106 Sir Charles Eliot [May 19, 



not be amiss to make some general definitions in African ethnology, 

 and inquire what are the great divisions under which the natives of 

 the continent may be classified. 



Whatever system of classification we may adopt for the population 

 of Africa, all authorities would, I think, admit the existence of three 

 well defined groups : the Hamites, the Negroes, strictly so-called, 

 and the Bantus. This enumeration makes no pretence of being 

 •complete. On the contrary, it ignores several important tribes who 

 are probably hybrids, and some who possibly represent independent 

 •stocks. But, still, the easiest way to give a clear preliminary state- 

 ment of African ethnology, with a view to approaching the more 

 difficult problems, is to describe these three groups. 



The name Hamite, or Hamitic, is primarily applied to a group of 

 languages of which ancient Egyptian is the most conspicuous repre- 

 sentative. More or less distinctly related to ancient Egyptian are 

 two other groups, the eastern and western Hamitic languages. In 

 the west, we find the Berber or Kabyl dialects spoken in Morocco, 

 and Tamashek spoken in the Northern Sahara. In the east, the 

 most important languages are Somali and Galla, but there are also a 

 number of less known tongues spoken near the Red Sea, such as Afar 

 or Danakil. The speakers of these languages are as a rule easily 

 differentiated from the other natives of Africa. They are in no sense 

 Negroes, and the superficial observer is more likely to confound them 

 with Arabs. In physique, they are mostly well-built, slim and tall, 

 and dark brown rather than black in colour. They have a tendency, 

 tliough not without conspicuous exceptions, such as the ancient 

 Egyptians, to prefer a semi-nomadic life and cattle-herding to a 

 settled existence in towns and agriculture. They are also inclined to 

 split up into independent tribes with democratic institutions, and few 

 of them, again with the exception of the ancient Egyptians, have 

 developed anything like a state or a kingdom. 



These tribes belong to Northern Africa, and have evidently no 

 taste for the forests of the interior. In the west, they hardly pass 

 beyond the Senegal river — that is about 15° north of the Equator — but 

 in tlie east tliey have penetrated slightly to the south of the 

 Efjuator itself. But there they are clearly the extreme outposts of 

 populations wliose natural head-quarters are in the north, and who 

 liave extended nmch further to the soutli on the east coast than on 

 the west on account of the congenial nature of the country and the 

 ])aucity of the inlial)itants. 



The second of the three classes of African natives which I have 

 mentioned a])ove is formed by the Negroes. This is a physical, not a 

 linguistic group. We all know the chief characters of the Negro 

 physique. They are people with black skins, woolly hair, flat noses, 

 tliick lips, and, though their general nniscular strength is enormous, 

 the calves of their legs are curiously undeveloped. The country 

 which they inhabit may be very rouglily defined as Africa north of 



