Pygmy

pig'my, a Greek measure of about fourteen inches, being the length from the knuckles to the elbow. The Greek writers, followed by Pliny, the Roman, spoke of little people, a pygmy or two in height, who were supposed to dwell in the interior of Africa. These accounts of the pygmies were considered fabulous until Du Chaillu, 1861, gave an account of tribes of pygmies seen by him in his explorations. Other travelers soon confirmed his account. These pygmy tribes dwell in the forested interior of Africa. Their stature is from two feet nine inches to four feet six inches. They live in temporary villages of huts four feet high clustered around that of the chief. They are of a yellowish brown or reddish brown complexion with hairy faces and bodies, retreating foreheads and protruding jaws. They are expert climbers. They make bark-cloth, wooden honey pots, pipes, bows and arrows, ornaments of fur and feathers, and sleeping mats of skins. Not-withstanding their small stature they are vigorous and are given to dancing. They hunt, but they despise tillage. They live usually on honey and the vegetable products of the forest, but show skill in taking game with nets and traps. By way of distinction we may add that a pygmy is one of a small people; a dwarf is an undersized individual found among people of ordinary height. See Dwarf; Giant