The height of ancient African populations has long been a topic of interest among anthropologists and historians. By examining skeletal remains, we can gain insights into the stature and physical attributes of people who lived on the continent hundreds or thousands of years ago.
What influences height?
Human height is influenced by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Nutrition, disease exposure, and physical labor conditions during childhood development all play key roles in determining adult stature. Populations with consistently adequate nutrition and low rates of childhood disease tend to be taller on average.
Across global populations today, average adult male height ranges from around 155 cm to over 185 cm. The tallest groups tend to live in Northwest Europe and include the Dutch, Norwegians, and Latvians. The shortest stature is found among some indigenous populations of Southeast Asia and Latin America.
Challenges in studying ancient African height
Reconstructing the heights of ancient Africans presents some unique challenges compared to other world regions. These include:
- Limited number of skeletons – Ancient human remains from Africa are relatively scarce compared to other regions like Europe and Asia.
- Poor preservation – The hot, tropical conditions across much of Africa are not conducive to preserving delicate skeletal material over long periods.
- Lack of grave goods – African burials often contain few or no artifacts, making it difficult to date remains and understand cultural contexts.
- Genetic diversity – Africa contains more genetic diversity than the rest of the world combined, complicating efforts to make broad generalizations.
Despite these limitations, physical anthropologists have managed to gather enough data to make some informed estimates about the stature of ancient African peoples.
Paleolithic and Neolithic Africa
The Paleolithic era, or Old Stone Age, in Africa spans a vast timeframe from the origins of archaic Homo sapiens over 300,000 years ago until the development of farming and herding societies after 10,000 years ago. During this long period, populations across the continent displayed considerable variability in height.
In general, hunter-gatherer groups of the Paleolithic are thought to have averaged around 170 cm for men and 160 cm for women. Skeletons of these foragers are characterized by tall stature but very robust bones, reflecting their highly mobile lifestyle. Examples come from Klasies River Cave in South Africa, dating to around 90,000 years ago.
With the adoption of food production in the Neolithic period, average heights in some African regions declined. In Nubia, located in present-day Sudan, male skeletons from farming communities show a decrease to roughly 166 cm compared to their hunter-gatherer predecessors. However, the sample sizes available are quite small.
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt provides the largest number of skeletal remains for gauging the stature of early African civilizations. Analysis of mummies, skeletal remains, and bone measurements indicates an average height of around 170 cm for males and 160 cm for females during the Dynastic period from 3100-332 BCE.
Elite Egyptians were comparable in height to lower class individuals. Neither social stratification nor ethnic background (Egyptian versus Nubian populations in the south) appear to have affected stature significantly. Some subtle differences over time have been detected, such as a gradual increase in average height during the New Kingdom period from 1550-1069 BCE.
Notable Tall Individuals
While average heights remained stable over Egypt’s three millennia of pharaonic rule, some exceptions are found among the ruling elites:
- Pharaoh Menes (c. 3100 BCE) – 170 cm
- Pharaoh Djoser (c. 2650 BCE) – 175 cm
- Queen Hatshepsut (c. 1480 BCE) – 170 cm
- Pharaoh Ramses II (c. 1250 BCE) – 170 cm
- Pharaoh Ramses III (c. 1180 BCE) – 175 cm
These examples from royalty suggest healthier upbringings and access to better nutrition were possible, if rare, in ancient Egyptian society.
Nubia and Kush
南 of Egypt, the Nubian and Kushite civilizations developed along the Nile River in what is now Sudan. Existing records between 2500 BCE and 350 CE indicate an average male height around 166 cm. For females, skeletal remains point toward an average closer to 155 cm.
As with Egypt, no major differences between social strata have been found. Stature appears to have been consistent between ruling elites, such as the Kushite pharaohs of the 25th Dynasty, and common urban and rural folk. Environmental conditions and an agricultural lifestyle remained stable for millennia.
Aksum Kingdom
In the Ethiopian highlands, the Aksumite kingdom emerged as a major power in East Africa around 400 BCE. Skel […]
Later Periods
After the decline of ancient kingdoms and empires, most African societies did not develop the complex social stratification seen in feudal Europe or imperial China. While hereditary elites existed in many chiefdoms and early states, skeletal remains suggest average heights were largely uniform across commoners and nobles.
The arrival of international trade prospects in the 15th century CE did not substantially alter environmental and nutritional conditions for most indigenous groups. Europeans who travelled to sub-Saharan Africa during early colonial encounters remarked on the tall statures of many local peoples.
19th and 20th Centuries
Under colonial rule in the 1800s and 1900s, the height of many African ethnicities appears to have declined or stagnated compared to pre-modern averages. This was likely exacerbated by famine, warfare, enforced labor, apartheid laws, and rural-to-urban migration stresses.
In South Africa, for example, the average height of black males dropped from around 170 cm before European contact to as low as 166 cm during the 20th century. Significant height gaps of up to 8 cm emerged between different socioeconomic classes.
Improvements in public health and nutrition across Africa since the mid-1900s have led to upward trends in average height across many countries. However, due to genetic differences, African populations have not reached the averages seen today in Europe and North America, which can exceed 180 cm for men.
Conclusion
Reconstructing ancient African stature relies on sparse skeletal evidence and must account for a genetically diverse continent. However, some broad patterns have emerged from archaeological studies:
- Paleolithic hunter-gatherers were relatively tall, with averages around 170 cm for men and 160 cm for women.
- The emergence of food production in the Neolithic does not appear to have substantially altered heights.
- Ancient civilizations like Egypt, Nubia, and Aksum show remarkable stability in average height across millennia.
- Elite status conferred little advantage in stature over commoners in most ancient African societies.
- The colonial period marked a reversal from pre-modern averages due to social and economic disruptions.
- Modern African nations are regaining stature with improved public health and nutrition.
While many details remain uncertain, the broad pattern of average heights between 160-175 cm in ancient Africa is supported by the skeletal record. Height was determined more by environmental factors and nutrition than social status or ethnicity. African peoples of the past achieved statures similar to or even greater than many populations around the world today.