What is Negrito?
[[File:Ati woman.jpg|thumb|An Ati woman, on the Philippines. The Ati are one of the ethnic groups traditionally considered to be 'Negritos'.]] '''Negrito''' is the name for several [[ethnic group]]s from [[South Asia|South]] and [[Southeast Asia]]. The name is the [[diminutive]] form of [[Negro]]. Like the term negro, many people consider it to be offensive. Usually, Negritos have a dark skin, curly hair, Asian facial features, and do not grow to be very tall. Traditionally, the term 'Negrito' has been used for the following groups: * The [[Indigenous peoples|indigenous population]] of the [[Andaman Islands]] * About 25 ethnic groups on the [[Philippines]], among them the [[Aeta people|Aeta]] and [[Ati people|Ati]] * The [[Semang people|Semang]] and the [[Senoi people|Senoi]] on the [[Malay Peninsula|Malay peninsula]] * The [[Maniq people]], in the south of [[Thailand]] The Island Negros, which is part of the Philippines today, was named after the Negritos. Because the term 'Negrito' doesn't allow a precise scientific definition, most scientists ([[Ethnologue|ethnologues]]) no longer use the term either. Genetic research found them to be more closely related to non-Negrito local populations than to each other. Many Negrito people share genetic ancestry with [[East Asian cultural sphere|East Asians]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Stoneking|first1=Mark|last2=Delfin|first2=Frederick|date=2010-02-23|title=The Human Genetic History of East Asia: Weaving a Complex Tapestry|url=https://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(09)02067-3|journal=Current Biology|language=English|volume=20|issue=4|pages=R188–R193|doi=10.1016/j.cub.2009.11.052|issn=0960-9822|pmid=20178766|s2cid=18777315 }}</ref> Their physical and morphological features were found to be local adaptions to tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia, rather than a remnant of a shared common ancestor, as suggested previously.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Zhang|first1=Xiaoming|last2=Liu|first2=Qi|last3=Zhang|first3=Hui|last4=Zhao|first4=Shilei|last5=Huang|firs