Maldivians
The people of the Maldives are
predominantly of Aryan stock.
According to Albert Gray:
“As to its origin, the race which now inhabits the Maldivian
archipelago (as well as Maliku or Minicoy islands) and which has occupied it
from the earliest time of which we have any record is unquestionably of the
same (Aryan) stock as the Sinhalese. This conclusion is borne out by evidence
of language, physical traits, tradition, folklore, manners and customs.”
However, little is known about whom
the first settlers of the Maldives were or where they came from. According to
Professor Stanley Gardiner who visited the Maldives in 1899, to study the
physical characteristics of the Maldivian people, Maldivians showed Aryan,
African, Arab as well as Indonesian features. Even today, one can still see the
same physical features. Some Maldivians have South Indian features while others
have distinctly African features. Some have Arab features while others look
Malay or Indonesian. So Maldivians can be said to be predominantly Indo-Aryan
with an admixture of African, Arab and Indonesian blood.
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