Mani and their Neighbors

For the last several thousand years at least the Mani have done so in close association with a succession of later arrivals, Veddoid, Mon-Khmer, Indian, Malay, Mongolid and other groups. Although the Mani do not seem to have intermarried much with outsiders (who mostly despised them), their contact was still close enough for them to have acquired some cultural traits from their neighbors.

                Some of the neighbors of the Mani People are

1.       The Veddoids

                                                               i.      of slightly larger stature than the Negritos but of a similar complexion.

                                                             ii.      The most immediately visible difference to the Negritos is that their hair is straight rather than curly.

                                                            iii.      It is an open question whether Negritos and Veddoids are related or whether their similarities (cultural and physical) are the result of living in the same area over very long periods.

                                                           iv.       The Senoi are groups living in Malaysia and along the shores of Sumatra in Indonesia. They are often r confused with Negritos. In Malaysia they speak Aslian languages (of the Senoic branch).

                                                             v.      Other Veddoids outside the Malay peninsula live in India, Sri Lanka and over much of Southeast Asia.

2.       The Mongolids

                                                               i.      The Mongolids came from the north during prehistoric time, probably mostly from southwestern China.

                                                             ii.      They replaced the then predominant Mon-Khmer ethnic group (whose languages have survived among the local Negritos).

                                                            iii.      The Thais (Siamese) were the last Mongolid wave to arrive (apart from the Chinese) only around 1,000 years ago.

                                                           iv.      They are now the culturally and politically dominant people in the part of the Malay peninsula belonging to Thailand.

3.       The Malays

                                                               i.      Are the people who have given their name to the Malay peninsula and the state of Malaysia.

                                                             ii.      Originating probably in Borneo, they are thought to have settled in the peninsula relatively late in its prehistory and to have done so in two waves, reflected in their classification today:

                                                            iii.      The Orang Asli (Proto-Malays), including the Jakun who speak an archaic Malay. The Malaysian government is trying to encourage the use of the term "Orang Asli" instead of "Sakai".

                                                           iv.      The Malays are politically by far the most important group in Malaysia. Their language Bahasa Malaysia is the country's official language.