Biological anthropology, also known asphysical anthropology, is a natural science discipline concerned with the biological and behavioral aspects of human beings, their extincthominin ancestors, and related non-humanprimates, particularly from an evolutionary perspective.[1] This subfield of anthropology systematically studieshuman beings from a biological perspective.
As a subfield of anthropology, biological anthropology itself is further divided into several branches. All branches are united in their common orientation and/or application of evolutionary theory to understanding human biology and behavior.
Bioarchaeology is the study of past human cultures through examination of human remains recovered in anarchaeological context. The examined human remains usually are limited to bones but may include preserved soft tissue. Researchers in bioarchaeology combine the skill sets ofhuman osteology,paleopathology, andarchaeology, and often consider the cultural and mortuary context of the remains.
Forensic anthropology is the application of the science of physical anthropology and humanosteology in a legal setting, most often in criminal cases where the victim's remains are in the advanced stages ofdecomposition.
Human behavioral ecology is the study of behavioral adaptations (foraging, reproduction, ontogeny) from the evolutionary and ecologic perspectives (seebehavioral ecology). It focuses on humanadaptive responses (physiological, developmental, genetic) to environmental stresses.
Paleoanthropology is the study of fossil evidence forhuman evolution, mainly using remains from extinct hominin and other primate species to determine the morphological and behavioral changes in the human lineage, as well as the environment in which human evolution occurred.
Paleopathology is the study of disease in antiquity. This study focuses not only on pathogenic conditions observable in bones or mummified soft tissue, but also on nutritional disorders, variation in stature ormorphology of bones over time, evidence of physical trauma, or evidence of occupationally derived biomechanic stress.
Primatology is the study of non-human primate behavior, morphology, and genetics. Primatologists usephylogenetic methods to infer which traits humans share with other primates and which are human-specific adaptations.
Biological anthropology looks different today from the way it did even twenty years ago. Even the name is relatively new, having been known as 'physical anthropology' for over a century, with some practitioners still applying that term.[2] Biological anthropologists look back to the work ofCharles Darwin as a major foundation for what they do today. However, if one traces the intellectual genealogy back to physical anthropology's beginnings—before the discovery of much of what we now know as the hominin fossil record—then the focus shifts to human biological variation. Some editors, see below, have rooted the field even deeper than formal science.
The first prominent physical anthropologist, the German physicianJohann Friedrich Blumenbach (1752–1840) ofGöttingen, amassed a large collection of human skulls (Decas craniorum, published during 1790–1828), from which he argued for the division of humankind into five major races (termedCaucasian,Mongolian,Aethiopian,Malayan andAmerican), now recognised as outdated and obsolete.[5] In the 19th century, French physical anthropologists, led byPaul Broca (1824–1880), focused oncraniometry[6] while the German tradition, led byRudolf Virchow (1821–1902), emphasized the influence of environment and disease upon the human body.[7]
In the late 19th century, German-American anthropologistFranz Boas (1858–1942) strongly impacted biological anthropology by emphasizing the influence of culture and experience on the human form. His research showed that head shape was malleable to environmental and nutritional factors rather than a stable "racial" trait.[10] However,scientific racism still persisted in biological anthropology, with prominent figures such asEarnest Hooton andAleš Hrdlička promoting theories of racial superiority[11] and a European origin of modern humans.[12]
In 1951,Sherwood Washburn, a former student of Hooton, introduced a "new physical anthropology."[13] He shifted the focus from racial typology to concentrate upon the study of human evolution, moving away from classification towards evolutionary process. Anthropology expanded to includepaleoanthropology andprimatology.[14] The 20th century also saw themodern synthesis in biology: the reconciling ofCharles Darwin's theory ofevolution andGregor Mendel's research on heredity. Advances in the understanding of themolecular structure of DNA and the development ofchronological dating methods opened doors to understanding human variation, both past and present, more accurately and in much greater detail.
^Jurmain, R,et al (2015),Introduction to Physical Anthropology, Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.
^Ellison, Peter T. (2018). "The evolution of physical anthropology".American Journal of Physical Anthropology.165.4: 615–625. 2018.
^abcdefSpencer, Frank (1997)."Aristotle (384–322 BC)". In Spencer, Frank (ed.).History of Physical Anthropology. Vol. 1. New York City, New York and London, England: Garland Publishing. pp. 107–108.ISBN978-0-8153-0490-6.
^Marks, J. (1995)Human Biodiversity: Genes, Race, and History. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
^Moore, Jerry D. (2009). "Franz Boas: Culture in Context".Visions of Culture: an Introduction to Anthropological Theories and Theorists. Walnut Creek, California: Altamira. pp. 33–46.
^American Anthropological Association. "Eugenics and Physical Anthropology." 2007. August 7, 2007.
^Lewin, Roger (1997).Bones of contention : controversies in the search for human origins (2nd ed., with a new afterword ed.). Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press. p. 89.ISBN0-226-47651-0.OCLC36181117.
^Washburn, S. L. (1951) "The New Physical Anthropology",Transactions of the New York Academy of Sciences, Series II, 13:298–304.
^Haraway, D. (1988) "Remodelling the Human Way of Life: Sherwood Washburn and the New Physical Anthropology, 1950–1980", inBones, Bodies, Behavior: Essays on Biological Anthropology, of theHistory of Anthropology, v.5, G. Stocking, ed., Madison, Wisc., University of Wisconsin Press, pp. 205–259.
Michael A. Little and Kenneth A.R. Kennedy, eds.Histories of American Physical Anthropology in the Twentieth Century, (Lexington Books; 2010); 259 pages; essays on the field from the late 19th to the late 20th century; topics includeSherwood L. Washburn (1911–2000) and the "new physical anthropology"
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