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Resumo

Red cell antigen, serum protein and red cell enzyme groups were determined for a series of 1,821 individuals belonging to six language families in Western New Guinea. Three of the language families represent groupings of languages spoken by people in the swampy coastal plain of south central Western New Guinea, two belong to the Central Highlands and one to the Lake Plain area near the confluence of the Idenburg and Rouffaer Rivers.The distribution of genetic markers reveals similarities with other parts of New Guinea. The A2 allele is absent in the ABO system, the frequency of Ns in the MNS system is very high as is the R1 (CDe) allele in the Rh system. Hp1 frequencies are high, and the transferrin allele TfD1 is present as in other parts of New Guinea. In the red cell enzyme systems several alleles were detected which are characteristic of Papuan, and in some cases other Melanesian populations: these include MDH3, PGK4, PGK2, PGM92, PGM102, as well as some very restricted alleles such as Peptidase B6 and Pep B2.Three indices of genetic distance were computed. The most striking results are the genetic closeness of the Dani and Moni populations from the Central Highlands to the Asmat on the southern coastal plain, and the relative remoteness of the Awyu from the other south coastal populations. The results are discussed in terms of recent theories on the origin and dispersal of Papuan languages.

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