Monday, November 29, 2010

Understanding Keita's "Coastal Northern African"

Keita's term of "coastal northern African" in his earlier publications has been a repeat subject of inquiry over the years. Indeed Keita's terms can be confusing, thanks in no small measure to his blanket terms of "coastal northern African pattern" vs. "southern"/"Africoid" pattern, in lieu of old racial constructs, which he rejects as being restrictive such that they overlook the true variability of populations under assessment, since they rely on highly idealized archetypes. However Keita's terms, perhaps while not as restrictive, can also be misleading if details of his analysis are not examined carefully.