Odontometric variation among American black, European, and Mongoloid populations.

Quantified dental parameters (including root and pulp areas and shape variables) derived from periapical radiographs were used to make comparisons among a sample of American Black (8 males--124 teeth, 9 females--138 teeth), European derivative (31 males--304 teeth, 43 females--497 teeth) and Mongoloid populations (12 males--166 teeth, 19 females--252 teeth). The magnitude of sexual dimorphism within each ethnic stock was also examined. Teeth from American Black males were robust. Sexual dimorphism was unambiguous in all groups although a hierarchical order existed from the highly dichotomous American Black sample to the more homogeneous European sample. The female dental phenotype was down-scaled from their male counterparts, but not gracile in form. Easily obtained area and shape parameters derived from dental radiographs proved useful as discriminators among racial groups and the sexes. The relationships among these data lend further support to the hypothesis of an African origin of modern humans.