Physical Anthropology Of European Populations

Using human skeletal remains, this volume traces health, workload and violence in the European population over the past 2,000 years. Health was surprisingly good for people who lived during the early Medieval Period. The Plague of Justinian of the sixth century was ultimately beneficial for health because the smaller population had relatively more resources that contributed to better living conditions. Increasing population density and inequality in the following centuries imposed an unhealthy diet - poor in protein - on the European population. With the onset of the Little Ice Age in the late Middle Ages, a further health decline ensued, which was not reversed until the nineteenth century. While some aspects of health declined, other attributes improved. During the early modern period, interpersonal violence (outside of warfare) declined possibly because stronger states and institutions were able to enforce compromise and cooperation. European health over the past two millennia was hence multifaceted in nature.

The social lives of the peoples of the Balkans have long stimulated the imaginations of their northern European neighbors. These peoples and places have anthropological traditions of their own, shaped initially by nationalist movements and, later, by socialism and other political constraints. From an anthropological perspective, this book explores the region between Greece and Slovenia, when political pressures were strongest in the era of the Cold War. Yet, the environments were by no means uniformly repressive. The study provides indispensable insights for new generations pursuing innovative research agendas in this region in the new century. It raises deeper issues about the boundaries and substance of the anthropological endeavor. (Series: Halle Studies in the Anthropology of Eurasia - Vol. 29)

Since the Western world first became aware of the existence of Neanderthals, this Pleistocene human has been a regular focus of interest among specialists and also among the general public. In fact, we know far more about Neanderthals than we do about any other extinct human population. Furthermore, over the past 150 years no other palaeospecies has been such a constant source of discussion and fierce debate among palaeoanthropologists and archaeologists. This book presents the status of our knowledge as well as the methods and techniques used to study this extinct population and it suggests perspectives for future research.

A comprehensive survey of the evidence from biological anthropology for Indo-European origins, based on the author¿s Ph.D. thesis prepared under Professor James Mallory. The author first considers the various ways that languages can spread and the possible biological implications of these expansions. He then embarks on an exhaustive survey of over 2,600 books and articles relating to the physical anthropology of the earliest identified speakers of Indo-European languages, based on ancient texts, artworks and lexicons. Covering Europe and Asia from the Neolithic onwards, His study surveys dermatoglyphics, mummified corpses, skeletal remains and genetic material for evidence of ancient population movements. An attempt is then made to integrate findings from biological anthropology with data from linguistics, archaeology and social anthropology to test the validity of migration theories in relation to the dispersal of the Indo-European languages and the possible location of a hypothecated proto-Indo-European language. The bibliography lists over 2,600 books and articles.