Anthropology Authropomorphism
THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA
to the accentuation of tlie nostrils, which gives it the • figure 0" formation. The lips of Jews are iilsoiharacteristic, as large a proportion as 48 per cent These features are the elements that go lieing thick. to make the marked Jewish type, which lias been defined "as Semitic features with ghetto expression ": it is foiuul in the Assyrian bas-reliefs as well From composite poras in the ghetti of to-day. traits of Jewish lads, the Jewish face has been defined as possessing "accentuated lle.xible nostrils; largish mouth, with ends well marked, and pouting under-lip; heavy chin; broad forehead with prominent superciliary ridges scantily covered with hair toward the outer extremities; and large, brilliant, dark eyes, set closely together, with heavy upper and protuberant lower lid, having a thoughtful expression in youth, transformed to a keen and penetrating gaze in manhood." The above results are averages taken from different numbers and different classes, and consequently vary in trustworthiness. The details as to hair, eye! and complexion are based upon the examination of no less than 120,0(10 individuals; those with regard to the nose, upon only 119. Differences in social position are found to affect results considerably; thus, while 12,000 Jews gave an average height of 1G2.1 cm., that of 130 English Jews of the better <lass was 170.8 cm. The predominantly narrow girth of Jews would give them what is technically " index of vitality " but statisknown as the lowest
prove otherwise. With regard to their vital statistics Jews show e(|Ual similarity among themselves and differences from the populations of which they form a part. Thus, as regards marriage, Jews in almost all countries have a lower marriage-rate than Christians when reckoned upon their total population; their average being about 6 marriages to every 100 inhabitants. They marry earlier than Christians (in Kussiu one-half of Jewish marriages are between persons under twenty); and. as a consequence, there is a larger proportion of .Jewish marriages between tics
bachelors and spinsters. Jews marry their cousins more frequently than other people do: probably The rate of intermarriage bethree times as often. tween Jews and Chiistians varies in Biostatics. different localities, from 1 per cent in Algeria to 12 )ier cent in Berlin. Jews appear to .seek divorce in slightly fewer numbers than the rest of the population. Estimated upon the total population, the birthrate of Jews is less an average of about 33.5 per 1,000 per annum against 3G.3 per 1,000 of the whole population though this is opposed to the general imjiression, and appears to be contradicted by the fact that, as a rule, Jews have larger families than ChrisOn the other hand, mixed marriages are retians. markably infertile, resulting in only 1.5 births per 1,000. The sex of Jewish children is more predominantly male than in the general population, in the proportion of 113 to 105 (the female children being reckoned at 100); though, curiously enough, in Europe there is a larger proportion of Jewesses to Jews ban of other women to men in the general ( lOG to 100) ]>opulation (103 to 100). This predominance of male births among Jews has attracted the notice of natunilists, and appears to be due partly to the smaller number of illegitimate and still-births. It is found that a larger proportion of males occur among the still-births, so that if there are less still-births, the larger is the number of males born. Jews show an average of about 3 per cent still-births among all births as against 4 per cent for the general population; this difference, though only of 1 per cent
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The comparais 25 per cent relatively. tive infrcquencv of still -births maj- be due to the small proportion of illegitimate births among Jews, which is, on the average, only one-fifth of the normal proportion. The superiority varies in different iilaecs, and is growing less marked as the pressure of ghetto opinion is becoming less effective; in I'rus.sia, for example, there has been a perceptible rise in the rate of illegitimacy. The death-rate of Jews is lower than that of their neighbors: strikingly .so in deaths under five years. This is the key to the whole of Jewish vital statisabsolutely,
tics, inasmuch as comparatively few deaths occur between five and twenty; hence, a relatively larger proportion of the Jewish popidation is living between these ages than is the case in genend populations. Consequently when marriages or births are reckoned on the tthoU: population they appear less among .lews than among their neighbors; though if reckoned upon the population over twenty years of age— which would be the proper method they
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would be
Thus
Budapest, the percentage of the Jewish population under twenty was The 45, while that of the Christians was about 34. low death-rate among infants is probably due to the fact that Jewish mothers rarely do anything but housework. A low death-rate is shown in almost all the remaining ages until the very highest age, which implies that Jews are longer-lived than their neighbors. It has been suggested that Jews should claim special life tables and premium rates from the insurance companies. Owing to the early date of marriage and the viability of children, the length of a generation (= average age of males at marriage -f1 year -- half the number of }ears of female fertility) of Jews is less than among Christians (about 31 years to 36); so that there are a larger luimber of generareally larger.
in
tions living together; their increase is more rapid; and tradition holds a stronger place among them. Little has been done in the collection of details as
to the special morbidity of Jews, either as regards the diseases to which they are most Morbidity, suscejitible or as regards those from which t hey die. Jews have been credited with immunity from tuberculosis; but this has been disproved by the experience of the overcrowded
New
They are undoubtedly in York. freer than others from alcoholism the number of such cases at Jewish clinics being phenomenally small. .Tews are said to be more liable than others to diabetes and hemorrhoids due probably to their sedentary habits. They are less liable to venereal diseases. They are undoubtedly more liable to disease of the nervous system, as is shown by the larger perimmigrants
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centage of deaf and dumb, blind and insane among them than among the general population. .lews are markedly more color-blind than their neighTheir neubors, at least one-half as much again. rotic tendency is due either to racial peculiarities or to the fact that they are mostly town-dwellers and that they earn their living by relatively more brainwork. Curiously enough, Jews, while showing inferiority compared with Christians in regard to nervous diseases, show superiority with regard to suicide,
few of them resorting
to self-destruction. peculiarities of Jewish statistics may be due to racial unity or to similarity of social conditions.
The
Even such measurements
as those of height and
growth may be due
to nurture rather than to nature. It has been found, for example, that Jews in the East of London reach an average height of 64.3
inches, whereas in the West End the average is 67.5. The social condition of Jews has thus a direct bearing upon their anthropometry, and the key to this
