On Wed, 30 Sep 1998, Hans Kylberg wrote:

> Greenland belongs politically to Denmark, which in turn is one of the
> three scandinavian countries. But Scandinavia does not exist outside
> the mainlands of Denmark, Sweden and Norway.

I apologize for the inaccuracy.  I was thinking of Greenland, in
fact, since I have recently read some research about the
Greenland Inuit, and thus make the link to Scandinavia.

> Their [Lapps] origin is not
> clear, but recent studies show that they probably have been genetically
> isolated for a very long time. They have some mongol-like traits (on the
> outside at lest). They traditionally subside on reindeers
> to a very high degree, so there might be some micro adaption there.

The isolation is what one would expect, even given the occasional
raid in the south for fresh virgins.

> Ray wrote:
>
> >Laplanders were also feared for this in Europe
>
> Never heard of that! They have lived a peaceful life in the north until
> we other "nordics" colonised them.

I don't doubt that such raids could have occurred from time to
time, but I have to doubt that they were of such frequency as to
make the Inuit some of the most genetically diverse people in the
world, as Ray appears to think.

Todd Moody
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