Abstract: This paper presents a detailed dermatoglyphic study of the normal hands of Han nationality which comprises 150 males and 150 females.
1. Frequencies of finger print patterns W, Lu, Lr, >A are 51.67%, 43.4%, 2.83% and 2.1% respectively. The male whorls are more abundant than female, while the arches appear with a greater frequency in females than in males (p < 0.01).
2. -Mean t% is 17.7%. Mean atd angle is 40.28°. The existence of two separate axial criradii (tm) amounts to 18 hands with a frequency of 3%.
3. The ab ridge count is 39.09 with a higher number in males than in females (p < 0.01). The mean value between a and b triradii is 2.21 cm. The normal values for ad ridge count and ad distance are 87.55 and 5.1cm respectively. The ratio of ab distance- to ab ridge count is 0.057cm.
4. No a and b triradii absence, while the frequency of absence of c or d triradii is 10.3%. The interdigital triradii (I2, L, I4) total up to 6.33%.
5. The A line terminates in 9.33% of the 600 hands at the thenar area with the right hands having much less frequency (2.33%) than the left (16.33%). If the hypothenar area is divided artificially into proximal and distal halves, the A line to the distal half is much more frequent at the right hands (55%) than that at the left (12.33%). Right hands in group comparison with left show a greater degree of transversality of configuration.
6. Frequency of true patterns in palmar thenar area (T/L) is 11.3%, that in palmar hypothenar area、2O,5%. Frequencies of bilateral pattern in I<. are 1%, 4.67% and 57% separately.
7. The distribution of different patterns of the palmar crease is the normal pattern, 88.2%; the simian line pattern, 2%; the, transitional'I pattern, 4.2%; the transitional1 II pattern, 3.5% and the pattern of Sydney, line, 3.2%.

Key words: Zhejiang district; Han nationality; Dermatoglyphics