How Your Ancient Ancestors Affected Your Height

February 18, 2008

Although human height varies a great deal, the average height among societies remains mostly consistent across the board. As a result, the average Pygmy, for example, is much smaller than the average Croatian. New research conducted by Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology researchers Robert Walker and Marcus Hamilton found that the past population density and location of our ancestors contributed to these size distinctions. If your distant ancestors lived in a crowded place with limited resources and a higher incidence of disease, you have a greater likelihood of being short, according to the findings. That's because natural selection favored earlier maturation and earlier births to combat the possibility of dying before reproduction.

Conversely, if your distant ancestors lived in less densely populated areas that were more open, like tundra, savanna and desert regions, you have a greater likelihood of being tall. Colder climates also seem to favor big people, probably because, by their very nature, these places result in less population density. But lifestyle also comes into play. Pastoral groups, such as the Maasai and other nomadic herding tribes, also tend to be tall.

Numerous studies and surveys over the years have documented the average height of people based on the country in which they live. Taking those into account, here is a rough listing of the rankings, starting with the tallest. The average adult male Croatian is just over 6 feet tall while the average adult Indonesian was reported as being just over 5'2".

1. Croatia
2. Netherlands
3. Iceland
4. Germany
5. Sweden
6. Norway
7. Estonia
8. Canada
9. Australia
10. Finland
11. Belgium
12. U.S.A. (ranking represents the national average, as heights varied widely among different ethnic groups within all of the listed countries)
13. Spain
14. U.K.
15. Lithuania
16. New Zealand
17. Poland
18. Italy
19. Israel
20. France
21. Switzerland
22. Malta
23. Korea
24. Portugal
25. Argentina
26. Singapore
27. Japan
28. Taiwan
29. Cote d'Ivoire
30. China
31. Brazil
32. Gambia
33. India
34. Philippines
35. Vietnam
36. Indonesia

Bigger tends to be better when it comes to fertility rates in small scale societies, such as in existing hunter-gatherer groups. For most people, however, size is what you make of it, as 5'3" basketball superstar Muggsy Bogues, the shortest person to ever play in the NBA, proved. (Nature photo.)