Finger and palm patterns of 400 men and 400 women of "Shopi" population from different regions of Bulgaria have been studied. The investigation was done according to Cummins and Midlo's method(1961). Bimanual and sexual differences were established in the examined "Shopi" population according to some dermatoglyphic signs. It is established that the studied "Shopi" population by the dermatoglyphical signs belongs to the europoids with a weak mongoloid admixture. The dermatoglyphy is a direction of the anthropology which studies the papilars images on the fingers, hands and feet. The relief of the skin appears during the fetal development and remains unchanging. Dermatoglyphic images are genetically inherited and unique, so they can be used as genetical markers during ethnogenesis studies. This way we can find the relation between the human populations and the differences among them, as well as the rules in the distribution of the papilars images among the population of different regions and ethnic groups. (Gadžiev, 1962; Gladkova 1958, 1964, 1966; Gladkova, Tom, 1970, 1973; Gladkova, Ramazanov, 1977; Hit 1964). Research on dermatoglyphic signs in Bulgaria has been made in some regions (Karev, 1979; Minkov, Markova, 1993; Minkov, 1992). Minkov (1994) made a study of the "Shopi" population in the region of Tran and Breznik (494 persons altogether) and concludes that according the complex dermatoglyphic signs this population is part of the europeoid population with light mongoloid admixture. The presented work is a part of wider dermatiglyphic research on the contemporary "shopi" populations in different regions of the country.
