The Ligurians were an ancient people who gave their name to Liguria, which once stretched from Northern Italy into southern Gaul. It is not known for certain whether they were a pre-Indo-European people akin to Iberians; a separate Indo-European branch with Italic and Celtic affinities; or even a branch of the Celts or Italics. Land occupation is more ancient than Ligurian rule though : in the grottoes of Grimaldi (Ventimille) a skeleton dubbed the "Man of Menton" was excavated dating from 25.000 BC (see this video in French).
- Sample :
Brief anthropological analysis :
- Type 1 : Dark complexion, dark eyes, leptomorphic, narrow face, long and straight high-rooted nose that can get convex, close set eyes, large jaw, pointy chin
~ Dinaromorphic Mediterraneans
This type was already identified in neighbouring France, around the town of Nice and in Piedmont around Cuneo. This is the main Ligurian type. Lighter-built pan-Italian variant :
More classical Mediterranean types are found as well : they're lighter on average (notice deep aqua-blue eyes which are very North Italian) with a straighter nose.
- Type 2 : Intermediate complexion, brachymorphic, round face, little low-rooted nose that can get snub-tipped, wide set eyes~ Alpinoid
This type was also abundant in Nice. On average, it's darker than its Piedmontese counterpart and less prevailing : in a word, coastal Liguria is more "Mediterranean" than inland Piedmont. Here are some individuals leaning towards Mediterranean variability :
- Final morphotypes :
