Population composition is a vast field which refers to the physical, socio-cultural and economic attributes of population, such as ethnicity, tribes, language, religion, literacy and education, age, sex, economically active population and many more traits.

Ethnic composition

Almost all the major races of the world are visible in India as a result of which the country is said to have a varied and diverse ethnic composition. The present day population of the country has been derived mainly from the following racial groups:

1. The Negritos

• According to some geographers likeS.K. Chatterjee,S.M. Katre ,A.C. Haddon  & B. S. Guha etc.  the earliest occupants of India were the people of Negrito race.
• They came to India from Africa and established their language on the soil of India.
• The Negrito race is characterized by certain physical features.
• These features include short stature, dark chocolate brown skin, woolly hair, bulbous forehead, broad flat nose, and slightly protruding jaws.
• The Andaman islanders and possibly other tribes such as the Uralis of Nilgiri hills, Kadors of Kochi, Pullayans of Palni hills, etc. have Negrito features.
• There are also some tribes like the Angami Nagas in the north-east and the Badgis in the Rajmahal hills in Jharkhand, etc. that possess some physical traits reminiscent of the Negrito.

2. The Proto-Australoids

• They came soon after the Negritos.
• According to Hutton, the Proto Australoids migrated to India from the East Mediterranean region, specifically from Palestine.

Distribution-

• The Proto-Australoids are found in many isolated regions of central and southern India.
• The Veddahs, Malavedahs, Irulas, and Sholagas are considered the most accurate examples of the Proto-Australoid group.

Central India

• The Bhils, Kols, Badagas, Korwas, Kharwars, Mundas, Bhumjis and Malpaharis of the highlands of Central India and the

South India

• Chenchus, Kurumbas, Malayans and Yeruvas of South India may all be treated as Proto-Australoids.
• The Proto-Australoids displaced the Negritos upon arrival in India, causing them to relocate to remote and less hospitable areas where they still live today.
• Physically, the Proto-Australoids share some similarities with the Negritos, but lack wooly hair.
• Notable physical characteristics of the Proto-Australoids include a bulbous forehead, broad flat nose, and slightly protruding jaws.

3. The Mongoloid

• Anthropologists believe China is the homeland of the Mongoloid race.
• The Mongoloids were pushed southward into the Malaya peninsula and Indonesia.
• They entered India through the passes in the northern or eastern mountains.
• There is some evidence of a Mongoloid Melanesian intrusion from Oceania to Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
• Presently, they occupy large areas in Ladakh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and some other parts of east India.
• The Mongoloid race has physical characteristics such as a round and broad head, face with very high cheekbones, a long flat nose, and little or no hair on the face and body.
• The tribes of Garo, Khasi, Jaintia, Lipchas, Chakmas, Murmis, Naga, and Daffla belong to the Mongoloid race.

The Mongoloid racial stock of India can be divided into two sub-groups as follows:

 (i) Palaco Mongoloids (i) Tibeto-Mongoloids.

(i) Palaro-Mongoloids

• They were the first of the Mongoloids who came to India. These people are settled mainly in the border areas of the Himalayas and the Myanmar border.

(ii) Tibeto-Mongoloids

• The Tibeto-Mongoloid people originated from Tibet and are predominantly found in Bhutan and Sikkim, as well as in the north-western Himalayas and Trans-Himalayan regions.

4. The Mediterraneans

• The Mediterranean racial stock is thought to have originated from the eastern Mediterranean region or South West Asia.
• Scholars believe that this group of people migrated to India during the second and third millennium B.C.
• These migrants brought with them earlier forms of Austro-Asiatic languages.
• It is also believed that they were the bearers of the earliest form of Hinduism in India.

Division-

(i)Palaeo-Mediterrraneans: are considered to be the first and the most ancient of all the Mediterranean races to enter India. Their physical characteristics include medium stature, dark skin and long head. In all probability, they first settled in north-west India and started practising agriculture there. However, they were pushed into central and southern India by subsequent immigrants. Today the Palaeo-Mediterranean stock forms the bulk of population of south India and a considerable proportion of population in northern India.

(ii)The Mediterranean: People of this racial type are believed to be the builders of the Indus valley civilization.

(iii) Oriental: Oriental type is very much similar to the Mediterranean type

5. The brachycephals

• The Brachycephals are a group characterized by broad heads.
• Coorgis and Parsis represent the Brachycephals in India.
• Brachycephals are further divided into three major sub-groups: Alpinoids, Dinarics, and Armenoids.
• Alpinoids came to India through Baluchistan, Sind, Kathiawar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamilnadu.
• Dinarics followed the Ganga Valley and its delta as their route to enter India.
• Armenoids came to India through Chitral, Gilgit, Kashmir, and Nepal.

6.The nordics

• The Nordics migrated to India around the second millennium BC and spoke the Aryan language.
• Their main concentration is in the northwestern region of India.
• They are prevalent in Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan.