Árbók Háskóla Íslands - 02.01.1925, Side 262
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A typical Mongolian fold is hardly to be found in Icelanders,
but a slight epicanthus is not uncommon especially in children.
In one man I have found obli({ue eyeslits with higher external
canthus, his features being in all other respects typically Nordic.
b) C o 1 o u r o f t h e h a i r. The hair-colour of the Ice-
landers is not so fair as that of the Norwegians. The figures
found by the present author and Halfdan Bryn are as follows
(cfr. tables p. 198 and 199):
Blonds
Reds
Light brown
Dark brown
Black-brown
E. Fischer’s Icelanders Norweginns
St ndard 20—22 ys.
No. 12—24 0,8 22,3
— 1—3 2,1 3,7
— 7-11,25-26 58,9 38,4
— 5—6 31,6 31,2
— 27 and 4 6,6 4,3
Blonds
Dark
Colour index
— 7—26 61,8 64,4
— 4-6 and 27 38,2 35,5
3,41 2,99
It is remarkable that the difference of hair-colour of the
Icelanders and Ncrwegians is so marked, the eye-colour being
nearly the same, but dark hair and light eyes are, however, no
uncommon combinations. This relatively dark hair-colour may
be a Norwegian heritage, but perhaps we see here an influence
of the Irish and Scotch colonists. According to A. C. H a d-
don1) tall stature and dark liair are often combined in Scot-
land, and in Ireland light eyes and dark hair are so often com-
hined, that it is „a leading characteristic of the population as
a wíhole“.
The eye-colour is somewliat lighter in tall persons than in
small ones, while apparently the hair-colour is darker.
c) Colour of the skin. My observations of the co-
lour of the skin are very defective because I had no exact stand-
ard at my disposal. I have nevertheless noted the skin-colour
of 629 individuals using only 3 colour classes: pure white,
pale yellow, and light brown, all the classes being different
shades of substantially white colour. My figures are the follow-
ing:
Wliite Yellow Brown
Low stature 81,9% 14,4'% 3,7%
Medium stature 81,2— 14,9— 3,8—
Tall stature 83,8— 12,9— 3,4—
Total 82,4— 14,4— 3,6—
1) The Races of Man, Cambridge 1924, p. 76—77 and 83,