BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY: WHAT IT STUDIES, BRANCHES AND IMPORTANCE - SCIENCE - 2024

The biological anthropology (also called physical anthropology) is a branch of general anthropology studying human nature considering both from a physical and biological standpoint. The word "anthropology" originates from the Greek roots anthropos (man) and logos (knowledge): knowledge of man.

Anthropology is responsible for studying the human being in an integral way, using both knowledge of the natural and social sciences. In order to be more efficient in such a complex and broad object of study, anthropology branched out, giving rise to four major sub-disciplines.

In addition to biological or physical anthropology, social or cultural anthropology stands out, which focuses on understanding the human being through the study of customs. Archeology also stands out, which focuses on the material remains (monuments, sculptures, utensils, documents, etc.) of the different civilizations.

The last sub-discipline is linguistic anthropology, which is responsible for relating the lexicon and linguistic uses with the cultural characteristics of societies.

Object of study

In its origins, biological anthropology -developed by British and American scientists- focused its study on the plurality of phenotypic varieties among specimens of a species and on the emergence of new species.

However, the main interest of biological anthropology has always been in the human being, its main objective being the understanding of the interaction of man with the environment and its influence on the evolution of culture.

These interests are approached from two study perspectives: descriptive and metric.

The descriptive perspective focuses on contrasting and comparing non-measurable aspects between groups of individuals. In contrast, the metric perspective studies and develops measurement techniques for measurable aspects, such as parts of the body.

To respond to the concern about the influence of man on the environment and on culture, biological anthropology focuses its interest mainly on five lines of study:

Hominid evolution

Through the analysis of hominid bones, the evolutionary line in anatomy is traced, and through the study of the use of tools it is possible to reconstruct biological and cultural aspects.

Human genetics

As in any other species, the generic study allows us to establish which individuals have easier survival and reproduction.

Development of partnerships

Through this discipline it is possible to investigate the growth and development of societies within the environmental environment.

Human biological plasticity

Biological and cultural evolution have been interrelated, and largely explained by environmental pressures.

Study of monkeys, apes and other primates

These species are the closest relatives of the human being; therefore, the study of their biology, evolution and behavior provides information about the first hominids.

Branches

In order to delve into each of the lines of research in this branch of anthropology and given the existence of different study perspectives, biological anthropology is divided into subspecialties:

Forensic anthropology

It focuses on the identification of skeletonized human remains.

Bioarchaeology or osteoarcheology

It is dedicated to the study of extinct civilizations through the analysis of bone remains located in archaeological sites.

Primatology

It focuses on the study of primates.

Osteology

Analyze bone fossils to infer the context in which the individual's life developed.

Somatology

Study the human body and its relationship with the physical, chemical, biological and botanical environment that surrounds it.

Ontogeny

It focuses on the different states that any organism goes through since it is conceived.

Paleoanthropology

It deals mainly with hominids through the study of fossils.

Paleopathology

Study the type of nutrition and diseases experienced by people or animals in ancient times, by studying teeth, bones, and samples of hair or skin.

Genetic anthropology

Analyze genetic evolution among both humans and primates.

Human ecology

It focuses on the study of the adaptation of culture and space to environmental pressures.

Raciology

He focuses his attention on the study of the physical characteristics of the different human races.

Importance

In terms of importance, biological or physical anthropology has brought great value to society. There is a basic importance related to the need for human beings to know our origins or understand differences between our own culture and that of other societies.

In addition to this, biological anthropology has also contributed to adding value to specific areas of today's society, or has provided tools to other disciplines. Some of these contributions are:

Clarification of historical events

The information provided by this branch of anthropology is of great use to historians.

Knowing the type of food that the soldiers had in a battle, the utensils used for cooking or peeling, as well as the traditions present in a certain society allows us to reconstruct and deeply understand historical facts.

Identification of remains

Much of the progress in identifying remains has been made under the umbrella of biological or physical anthropology. These types of techniques typical of forensic science allow today to solve police investigations, determine relationships or reconstruct images of people relevant to society.

Language learning

The contributions made by linguistic anthropology have helped us understand the way in which one language is related to another.

The different ways in which cultures manipulate words and language have even been better understood, sometimes dealing with the same language, as in the case of Spanish, and the different uses made of the same word in Spain and in different countries. from Latin America.

This knowledge about the use of the language and its links contributes to the institutionalization of the different uses and, according to some linguists, to a faster learning of similar languages.

Integration generation

Some societies may have cultural practices that other societies find strange or unpleasant.

The understanding and dissemination of these practices helps to reduce the gap between one society and another, avoiding or reducing processes of marginalization in a world subject to high geographic mobility of the population.

Business internationalization

In an increasingly interconnected world, people from different cultures communicate and conduct business every day. The contributions made by anthropology on the culture of different societies has allowed entrepreneurs from different cultures to establish successful business relationships.

Holistic vision of the human being

At a time when we have a great accumulated knowledge, the contribution of this discipline has been vital, since it integrates and synthesizes the learning provided by other disciplines such as biology, history, etc.

Prediction

Extensive knowledge about the evolution of human beings and culture helps to predict the steps that today's societies will follow.

Humanization of medicine

The holistic and comparative nature of anthropology has led disciplines such as medicine to realize that in the study of disease it is necessary to take into account not only biological factors, but also social, cultural and economic ones.

This has transformed the way of seeing the patient, which goes from being an object of study to a person who, in addition, needs to be understood. New professional profiles have even appeared, such as the anthropological doctor.

References

1. Why is anthropology important? At EASA. Accessed June 7, 2018, from easaonline.org.

2. Harris, M. (2013). Introduction to General Anthropology (7th ed.). Madrid: Alliance.

3. Why Is Anthropology Important ?. In Classroom. Retrieved June 7, 2018, from classroom.synonym.com.

4. Biological anthropology. (nd). On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 7,2018, from en.wikipedia.org.

5. Physical anthropology. (nd). On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 7,2018, from es.wikipedia.org.