Body size estimation of small‐bodied humans: Applicability of current methods

Abstract

Body size (stature and mass) estimates are integral to understanding the lifeways of past populations.Body size estimation of an archaeological skeletal sample can be problematic when the body size or proportions of the population are distinctive. One such population is that of the Holocene Later Stone Age (LSA) of southern Africa, in which small stature (mean femoral length = 407 mm, n = 52) and narrow pelves (mean bi-iliac breadth = 210 mm, n = 50) produce a distinctive adult body size/shape, making it difficult to identify appropriate body size estimation methods. Material culture, morphology, and culture history link the Later Stone Age people with the descendant population collectively known as the Khoe-San. Stature estimates based on skeletal "anatomical" linear measures (the Fully method) and on long bone length are compared, along with body mass estimates derived from "morphometric" (bi-iliac breath/stature) and "biomechanical" (femoral head diameter) methods, in a LSA adult skeletal sample (n = 52) from the from coastal and near-coastal regions of South Africa. Indices of sexual dimorphism (ISD) for each method are compared with data from living populations. Fully anatomical stature is most congruent with Olivier's femur + tibia method, although both produce low ISD. McHenry's femoral head body mass formula produces estimates most consistent with the bi-iliac breadth/stature method for the females, although the males display higher degrees of disagreement among methods. These results highlight the need for formulae derived from reference samples from a wider range of body sizes to improve the reliability of existing methods.

Bony pelvic canal size and shape in relation to body proportionality in humans

“…Some individuals in the North African (females, 1 out of 20; males, 3 out of 28) and Danish (females, 3 out of 10; males, 1 out of 9) samples are missing tibia; femora-only formula were used in these cases. Kurki et al (2010) found that Apex of S5 to transverse ridge of ischial tuberosity (K) Outlet anterior Transverse ridge of ischial tuberosity to dorsomedial inferior pubis (K) Canal depth Apex of auricular surface to transverse ridge of ischial tuberosity (M) a Measurement definitions are from Tague (1989), Franciscus and Holliday (1992), and Buikstra and Ubelaker (1994). Body mass was calculated following Auerbach and Ruff (2004) using the average of three femoral head diameter 1 formulae (Ruff et al, 1991;McHenry, 1992;Grine et al, 1995) for all except the small-bodied samples-the Andaman Islands, African Pygmy, Philippine, and South African samples-for which only McHenry's (1992) formula was used (Supporting Information Table S3).…”

Stature in Holocene foragers of North India

“…New methods of estimating stature are being published regularly with higher levels of precision for a chronologically and geographically diverse array of samples, including native North Americans (Auerbach and Ruff, 2010), ancient Egyptians (Raxter et al, 2008), and late Pleistocene and Holocene Europeans (Meiklejohn and Babb, 2011;Ruff et al, 2012). Extensive research has been conducted in Africa (Raxter et al, 2008;Kurki et al, 2010;Pfeiffer and Harrington, 2011), the Americans (Auerbach, 2011;Pomeroy and Stock, 2012), East Asia (Temple et al, 2008) and Europe (Meikeljohn and Babb, 2011;Ruff et al, 2012), for example. Although interest in research on stature and body mass is rapidly expanding in many regions of the world, this focus of research is unevenly distributed across the globe.…”

Bioarchaeological Evidence for the Basis of Small Adult Stature in Southern Africa

“…Adult postcranial ditnensions are consistently small throughout the Holocene. When four approaches to stature estimation from the skeleton were compared (Kurki et al 2010), results of all methods were similar to the mean statures of living Kalahari men and women (men, 160.9 cm; women, 150.1 cm; Truswell and Hanson 1976). When plotted by uncalibrated radiocarbon dates, estimated statures are within this range throughout the Holocene, except for those of a number of exceptionally short adults who lived within a period from ca.…”