(Above) Thai Negrito; mother & child.
(Above) Young Negrito Girl, Mariveles (Philippines) in the year 1901
OBG's WOW (Word of the Week) - Negrito - is a collective term widely used among anthropologists, meaning Asian tribal people (that live in Oceania and the southeastern part of Asia) with a dark-skinned complexion, small stature and "peppercorn" curled hair (besides other characteristics) speaking Aslian languages. The Negrito are also described as a semi-nomadic group in Southeast Asia. They include the Aeta, Ati and at least 25 other tribes of the Philippines, the Semang of the Malay peninsula, the Mani of Thailand and 12 Andamanese tribes of the Andaman Islands. Occasionally, some Negrito are referred to as Pygmies, bundling them with unrelated peoples of similar physical stature in Central Africa. [Source: Merriam-Webster & Wikipedia & Wikipilipinas] Mani is what the Thai Negrito call themselves. The word is of Mon-Khmer origin and means "human being." The physical characteristics of the Mani people are superficially similar to Negroid Africans. There are major differences, however, and the Negrito are not Africans or Negroids. The Thai Mani speak the Aslian Tonga language (they really are Semang living in Thailand, the differences are not great and Tonga is closely related to the Semang language.) The Malaysian Semang are the "classical" Malaysian Negrito and speak a variety of different Aslian languages. The Orang Darat is a group rather similar to the Semang but is thought to have arrived in a later wave of migration and to be physically a little shorter than the Semang. They also speak Aslian languages. [Source: Andaman.org]
(Above) The Thai Mani hanging out.
(Above) Thai Mani family
(Above) Negrito girls of Zambales (Philippines), one wearing necklace of dried berries in the year 1903
