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23 6 ARMENIA AND THE NEAR EAST
in Armenian. But this derivation may be uncertain. The
same nåme occurs also in many place-names, such as Haiots
dzor (the valley of the Hals), near Van, the ancient Khaldian
capital, Haikapert (the fortress of the Hals), Haikazor,
Haikavan, Haikashen, etc.
Anthropology and Origin.
Like all the modem peoples in Western Asia the Armenians
are a mixture of several races ; but they are more homogeneous
than most of the near-Asiatic peoples, the large majority of
them håving the easily recognized characteristics of the
strongly marked race which has been called Western Asiatic,
Armenoid, or Armenian.
The race in question is tall and of a slim build ; the head
is decidedly short-skulled (index, 85-87), and remarkably high,
especially from the ear to the crown, the back of the head
being curiously flat, as the line of the neck continues straight
up ; the skull is not particularly wide, but can nevertheiess
contain a brain of considerable size on account of its excep
tional height. The face is long and narrow (face index,
92~94) ; the nasal ridge is high and narrow, often in an almost
continuous line with the forehead, and with a fleshy and
somewhat hooked tip ; the forehead is of medium width,
high, and rather sloping, the chin generally weak, with the
profile receding in a line from the upper lip downwards. The
complexion is of a light-brown, resembling sunburn ; the
hair soft, often wavy, and brownish-black ; there is a thick
growth of beard and hair, both on the head and on the body ;
and the eyes are dark brown. Characteristic of the race, and
especially of the Armenian people, are its tenacious vitality
and exceptionally high birth-rate. In Western Asia the race
is widely distributed, forming an important element of the
various peoples inhabiting Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Mesopo
tamia, Syria, Palestine, and North Arabia ; while it is also
found in mixed types eastwards in Persia as far as India.
It bears so strong a resemblance to the so-called Dinaric
race in Europe that it is impossible to distinguish between
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