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Chapter-2 Branches of Anthropology

Q1. What is physical anthropology? Describe the brief history and
development of physical/biological anthropology?
Ans. Physical/ biological anthropology is the study of the past and present evolution of
the human species and is especially concerned with understanding the causes of present
human diversity. Within this broad definition it encompasses fields as disparate as
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human palaeontology, evolutionary biology, human genetics, comparative anatomy and
physiology, primate behaviour, human behavioural ecology, and human biology. Human
biology broadly covers the areas of modern human biological variation, human ecology,
nutrition and demography. What makes physical/ biological anthropology unique is that
it brings all of these areas to bear on our understanding of the human condition.
Evolutionary perspectives encompass the origins of modern humans and of modern
human diversity; the relationship between climate and human evolution; the evolution
of language and cognition. What underlies all of these areas is the interpretation of
archaeological and palaeontological evidence. Such evidence is considered within the
broader theoretical context of evolutionary biology and furthermore draws on evidence
from comparative morphology and behavioural research on both humans and non-
human primates.
Physical anthropology was initially devoted to the study of measurements and
observations on thehuman body and human skeleton. Today physical or biological
anthropology encompasses the following:
• The study of evolutionary biology and human genetics

• Hominid evolution to understand the origin of modern humans
• Biological differences in human populations
• A bio-cultural overview on human growth and development
History and Development: Although physical aspects of man have been studied
since the time of Herodotus, “the Father of History,” it was only during the latter half of
the 19th century that physical anthropology developed as a systematic science.
Herodotus (c.484 B.C – c.425 B.C) in his writings mentions the differences in human
skulls of Egyptians and Persians and attributes them to environment. Hippocrates
(c.460B.C – c.377 B.C), “the Father of Physic”, is the pioneer in the field of physical
anthropology. He made several contributions, two of which, De naturahominis and De
aeraacquiset loci, are of special interest to anthropologists.
Aristotle (c.384 B.C – c.322 B.C) viewed man as a social animal and his study was based
on biology. His work on the physical and mental set-up of man was unaffected by the

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