Abstract: A somatological survey on 407 Shui people (203 males, 201 females)living in Sandu county in Guizhou was made. Their ages ranged from 20 to 60 years. Their parents, grandparents and maternal grandparents were Shui nationality. Seventeen items of observations and 52 measurements were made. The physical characters of Shui people were summarized. On the basis of the "Rm" value and the cluster graph of kinship matrix of Shui nationality with some other nationalities, Shui is closer to Gelao, Dong, Miao, Yao, Yi, Zhuang in Guangxi and Tujia in Hunan province than to other nationalities. Shui people can he grouped under southern type in modern Chinese.

Key words: Anthropometry; Shui nationality