Dissanayakalage Tharaka Harshani Ananda & Charmalie A. D. Nahallage

Sri Lanka’s Indigenous population, the Veddas, demonstrate substantial biological continuity with island’s earliest Homo sapiens inhabitants. Despite their importance for assessing evolutionary continuity and population affinities, contemporary facial morphometric data remain limited. This study provides the first detailed comparison of facial morphometry between two Indigenous Vedda groups, the Yakkure and Henanigala, to document population specific variation and situate them within broader regional patterns. A purposive sample of 328 adults (164 per group) was assessed using standardized anthropometric protocols. Measurements included total facial height (TFH), upper facial height (UFH), lower facial height (LFH), and facial breadth (FB), from which facial indices were derived. Marked sexual dimorphism was observed in both populations (p < 0.001), with males exhibiting significantly larger linear dimensions across all variables; however, proportional shape indices remained relatively conserved between sexes. At the population level, the Yakkure consistently exhibited significantly greater vertical dimensions than the Henanigala, with mean TFH (108.96 mm vs. 106.59 mm), UFH (63.33 mm vs. 61.18 mm), and LFH (61.56 mm vs. 58.59 mm) all differing significantly (p < 0.001). However, facial breadth (FB) did not differ significantly between the groups (p > 0.05). Consequently, the Yakkure displayed a significantly higher Upper Facial Index (UFI: 53.70 vs. 52.32), indicating relatively narrower upper facial proportions. Morphologically, the Yakkure proportions align with vertically elongated (leptoprosopic to hyperleptoprosopic) populations such as historical Vedda, Coastal Vedda, Sri Lankan Tamils, North Indians, East African Nilotes, and Andamanese groups. In contrast, the Henanigala show broader (mesoprosopic) affinities comparable to Sinhalese, South Indians, Orang Asli (Malaysia), Andhranians, Indonesians, and Australian Aboriginal groups. These findings highlight clear intra Vedda differentiation likely shaped by varying degrees of isolation, admixture, and ecological adaptation. As the first population specific analysis of its kind, this study provides essential baseline data for anthropological, forensic, and archaeological comparisons in South Asia.

KEY WORDS: Anthropometry; Face; Indigenous Peoples; Sex Characteristics; Sri Lanka.

ANANDA, D. T. H. & NAHALLAGE, C. A. D. A comparative study of facial morphometrics of the Yakkure and Henanigala Vedda: Insights into population affinities and evolutionary patterns. Int. J. Morphol., 44(3):747-755, 2026.