MAJOR DIVISIONS OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Physical anthropology covers a vast field of study which pledges to explore human mystery related to their origin, differentiation, diversities and distributions. With the impact of genetic approaches during the recent times physical anthropology has been getting faced considerable extension. After reviewing the whole situation, physical anthropology can divided into the following branches.
1. Primatology:
It is the systematic study of the primates group of mammal. The primates are the most widespread and diversified groups of animals and these include man, the central figure of anthropological study. The primates, starting from the smallest rat like microcebus and up to the largest huge-bodied gorilla, are in the various stages of development following variegated life patterns. Thus the integrated study of the following variegated life patterns. Thus the integrated study of the primates in the background of physical anthropology has an intrinsic value to understand the position of man.
2. Ethnology:
It is the study of human diversities. Variability in appearance is the characteristic features of all living organisms, and in man this variability influences extensively. All the living men in the world are classed in to different groups known as Races. The races are now understood as the Mendelian populations, an inbreeding group of humanity sharing a common gene pool. The study which tries to explain the nature, formation and differentiation of the racial groups is known as ethnology. Physical anthropology6 is specially designed to bring out the striking and fascinating characteristics of these groups of people.
3. Human biology:
During the present period there develops a special fascination to call physical anthropology as biological anthropology. The new physical anthropology has been packed up with many concrete biological principles and concepts. The biology of human being differs strikingly from the biology of other animals because of the impact of cultural achievements. Human biology is highly influenced by culture. Sometimes culture has remodeled biological phenomenon. Thus physical anthropology is largely engaged in understanding the categorical feature of man and their successive development, change and structural as well as functional variations through time.
4. Palaeoanthropology:
Palaeoanthropology is branch of physical anthropology which functions in documenting the biological history of mankind. The palaeoanthropologists work on fossil evidences collected from the different layers of the earth. This study involves connecting the human and the non-human traits on a chain that had so long been lost. In so doing palaeoanthropologists take the help from many other related disciplines. The physical anthropologist contributed a lot in the understanding of the various hominid and non-hominid perspective. Physical anthropologists are the specialists in comparative anatomy of man and apes; they evaluate the status and the evolutionary significance.
5. Human Genetic:
Genetics involve in the study of inherited characters. A genetic relation exists between parents and off-springs. The tendency of inheritance of paternal traits is known as heredity. The heredity and its mechanism must be well understood to get a proper idea regarding the origin and evolution of man as well as the significance of his different races. The physical anthropology during the present periods has been highly influenced by the results of genetical studies on human beings. Human genetics reveals the mechanism of heredity of various traits in men, and it becomes an essential branch of physical anthropology today.
6. Medical Anthropology:
In the domain of physical anthropology the study of disease pattern and their nature, impact and recipes that have been developed for long in human societies is of specific importance. The socio-cultural as well as genetical or environmental determinants of disease within a population can be brought out only through the close study of the people and their way of life. The bio-medical approach to various diseases and way of life. The biomedical approach to various diseases and abnormalities in health proves very much effective in combating diseases in human societies. It receives full form when the whole arena is highlighted through the perspective of medical anthropology.
7. Physiological Anthropology:
Physical anthropology in the olden days was mainly concerned with the study of the skeletal parts and the metric analysis of different superficial bodily organs. But now-a-days the physical anthropology takes into consideration the internal organs of the human body to study their bio-chemical constitutions. How the physiology of man interacts with the external factors like climates, food habit, etc., is also an important concern of physical anthropology. Thus in the study of biochemical variations I man and other primates the branch known as physiological anthropology has been designed under the auspices of physical anthropology.
8. Forensic Anthropology:
Physical anthropology deals, to a considerable extent, with the skeletal structure of hominids and non-hominids to understand the similarities and differences of the body parts. This integrated knowledge on anatomy is now being greatly used in identifying the nature and status of the individuals from bone fragments. Besides these human hand and foot-prints, blood strains, etc., are studied in physical anthropology and these have become very much effective I the detection of criminals. Forensic anthropology is that branch of physical anthropology which deals, for forensic purposes, with the identification of persons with the help of these biological remains.
9. Nutritional Anthropology:
It is branch of physical anthropology which deals with the matter relating to the nutritional perspective of human beings and their subsequent growth and development. The population of a country essentially needs proper growth and development. Growth is dependent on varied factors which can be broadly divided in to two- heredity and environment. Physical anthropology has provided ways to study the impact of these two factors on human beings. Nutritional anthropology, as a branch of physical anthropology, is devoted to such studies.
10. Dental Anthropology:
In physical anthropology the study of teeth and teeth pattern are of great importance. The teeth are the indicators of the body shape and size as well as food habit and related behavior patterns. In most of the palaeoanthropological excavations teeth have formed the main part and the study of dental morphology has naturally been developed to a considerable extent. It helps in the understanding of human evolution, growth, body morphology, genetical features and in the utilization in the domain of forensic sciences. Thus as a branch of physical anthropology, dental anthropology is regarded as a specialized field which pledge to study the distribution of different dental traits among different populations.
11. Anthropometry:
In the study of physical anthropology sometimes there is an urgent need to measure the different bodily parts through systematic measuring techniques and thereby to express the form of the organs concerned quantitatively. It is known as the anthropometry and it is a specific branch of physical anthropology. Measurements on human body are not only useful in studying gradual human development through evolution and in understanding the racial discrimination patterns but also these are helpful in day to day way of life of the people which is extensively related human bodily forms.
12. Ergonomy:
it is the study of the physical fitness of man in various working conditions. Ergonomy is a branch of physical anthropology in which a study is taken up to establish a correlation between the static body dimensions and the designing of machine to be driven by man. It got a specific need because of the fact that many groups people differ in body size as a result of varied biological and environmental factors.
13. Demography:
demography is the science of population and it is directly related to fertility and mortality. These two factors are specifically influenced by heredity and environment. Demographic study is highly influenced by various statistical data and their subsequent analysis. As demographic study is centered round the nature, growth age, sex structure, spatial distribution, migration in addition to fertility and mortality of the populations, so it acts as a specific branch of physical anthropology.
14. Ethology:
Ethology is the science of animal behavior. It is relatively a new discipline but it has got a good prospect. In physical anthropology the studies on the behavior of primates have been receiving much importance. The data from these studies are being used to help explain the basic background of human behaviours and to suggest how human ancestors may have acted on the different issue. During recent years study on behavior-patterns of monkeys and apes in their natural environment has become a categorical wing in the domain of physical anthropology.
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