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What height is considered low average high. How tall were people during the Middle Ages? Growth gap between rich and poor has narrowed

Looking at the exhibitions devoted to the Middle Ages, you catch yourself thinking about "historical" discomfort. Let's say two components: the museum exhibits really real archaeological finds (not reconstructions), and the comments presented under the exhibits describe the realities of that time. Then three inevitable questions arise.

The first - the size of medieval armor suggests that the height of the "standard" knight did not exceed 140 cm. Accordingly, we make allowances for his weight, maneuverability and combat equipment. But is it really so?

The second - military uniform (sword, spear, hammer, shield, etc.) demonstrates that medium height knight should be 168-173 cm, but not 140 cm. Otherwise, the sword turns into a staff.

The third is about the "historical" museums themselves. In most cases, we can observe reconstructed objects, that is, the formalized representations of historians about the objects of that time, but not the objects themselves relating to the Middle Ages.

In other words, if the average height of a warrior was 130-140 cm, then this means that in the 12-13th centuries A.D. there was a completely inexplicable decrease in human growth. Indeed, at the turn of the first millennium, the average height of a European reached 170-173 cm and even slightly higher. In addition, the Romans who lived during the reign of Caesar-Nero were taller and more massive than their modern descendants.

Indicative in this respect is the story of the daughter of a German burgomaster, described in a medieval chronicle. The girl took everyone - she was beautiful and well-behaved, and they gave a dowry for her, only her height was too great - the same 170 centimeters.

In this logic, a modern adult man among the illustrious companions of King Arthur would look like Gulliver. But the whole evolution shows that people are constantly growing. From century to century. People are getting taller. The average height of a person increases by one centimeter every fourteen years. The sizes also change accordingly. chest, and the parameters of the legs. In the last 150 years alone, we have grown by more than 20 centimeters. The average height of a homo is 180 cm for men and 175 cm for women. And this figure is growing every year. More than ten percent of the adult male population is over 190 centimeters tall. However, it was in the Middle Ages that a strange decline was observed, the causes and consequences of this process seem to be unclear.

What could be the explanation?

  1. Suppose that there was no decrease in human growth in the Middle Ages. On the contrary, there was an acceleration, sometimes even cases of gigantism. Let's take the decline of the Roman Empire - the 5th century AD as a starting point. The average height of a person, judging by the data of scientists, was close to 170-172 cm for men and 164-165 cm for women. We will assume that from this period, the process of increasing growth has been continuously going on, at a rate that is not inferior to the modern one. Then we get at the turn of the first millennium the average height of men is 210-220 cm, for women - 192 to 198 cm. But this is not so. It turns out that at that time a certain physiological process, which led to a loss of average height that way by 30-40 centimeters. In principle, from a biological point of view, this phenomenon is explainable, since there are 3 main restrictions on the size of terrestrial creatures, especially mammals.
  2. The bodies of animals are supported by skeletons, which must be strong enough to support their weight. The problem is that with increasing overall size the body's bone size should increase exponentially. This extra volume requires that muscles, blood vessels, and organs such as the heart and lungs also increase accordingly, with the result that many of the soft organs of the body will simply be crushed by their own weight.
  3. Large creatures have a problem with even circulation of blood to all parts of the body. gravity makes it gather at the feet. The heart, again, must expand exponentially in order to meet the circulation requirements of large organizations. On the other hand, the Earth was already going through a period of gigantism of living nature. It didn’t seem to apply to people. And the explanation for this may be even simpler - the size of the planet itself has changed. The attraction was weaker, the rate of atmospheric circulation was faster. After the need for gigantomania disappeared, "unnecessary" species of animals and plants became extinct. But what if the size of the Earth also changed during the heyday of the Middle Ages? Not as globally as at the end of the Mesozoic, but still ...
  4. The larger the animal, the lower the ratio of its body surface to mass, it is more difficult for them to cool by transferring heat to environment... And unlike whales, terrestrial giants are threatened with banal overheating. If our assumption is correct and, let's say, at the turn of the millennium there was an insignificant increase in it, then along with the physics of the planet, the physiology of its inhabitants, including homo, also changed. By the way, the reason for the decline of the militant Scandinavian "civilization" is also known: the climate has changed corny. Horticulture flourished in Greenland, fruits were grown, and the British Isles were home to lions, which are still considered the symbol of the islanders to this day. And such metamorphoses cannot be explained solely by the change in the geography of the magnetic poles and ocean currents. By the way, the latter must have its own rational reasons.
  5. Now let's turn our attention to historical museums from a business point of view. What is easier - to exhibit a real thing unearthed in medieval strata, or to present a reconstruction? Layout by views, of course. We dismiss the presentation as contrived by historians. From what was actually found, what do we see: traces of battles? holes? Dents? They are not here. As there is no armor on the battlefields, but the Middle Ages is a time of constant wars, conflicts, the creation of the first empires. Where are the traces of grandiose battles, except for the statements of court chroniclers and monks?

Let's go back to physics and physiology. We have: a tall hypothetical warrior 182cm, weight 90kg. Equipment set: comforter, underarmor, chain mail, helmet with shoulder strap, handcuffs, shoulder pads, knee pads, greaves. Iron sword and shield. Any biologist or even a doctor will say that with regular training, health is enough for a maximum of 5 minutes of combat, the helmet greatly narrows the field of view to 90-100 degrees. Overheating of the body, poor circulation, risk of stroke and impairment hormonal background, a problem with veins. When crossing, the speed is 2-3 km per hour in steps, in reality a one-time crossing is 4 km, then rest is necessary. So battles in the form that historians present to us are simply unrealistic.

And the last thing. The first mentions of armor and knights in our "modern" understanding are found ... by Cervantes in Don Quixote. Then we went historical descriptions, battles, empires, absolutist monarchies. So knights and chivalrous romance may turn out to be an invention of a Spanish writer. And the displayed armor in museums - without dents, holes and traces of battles - is not that children's costumes - although this cannot be ruled out - but examples of a kind of medieval "high" fashion. It is impossible to dress, but how to “sew” is clear.

"God, how men were crushed!" - Do you know such an exclamation? Interestingly, does the male population become lower or does it just seem to the ladies who have grown up and climbed on high heels? About what a man of average height is and what exactly is this indicator in the world and in our country, we will talk in the article.

Is height an indicator of sexuality?

Men of average height, probably, with some envy look at tall and therefore such noticeable friends. “Eh, I would have his height! I would have conquered all the beauties! " - something like this they reason. And they are wrong.

In Switzerland, researchers drew attention to the fact that especially pronounced sexuality is inherent in men of precisely average height. Interestingly, the lower the representative of the stronger sex, the higher his libido.

More than 500 men between the ages of 20 and 54 took part in the experiment, as a result of which it was found that everyone whose height did not exceed 170 cm proved to be strong, passionate and gentle partners. By the way, the ladies noticed these qualities almost from the very first minutes of their acquaintance.

Scientists explained this by the fact that a man of average height and below, as a rule, has complexes associated with this indicator, so he tries to prove himself, to establish himself in different areas, which, in particular, includes sex.

Is the growth of a man a guarantee of his success?

In our ancestors, the growth of a man was directly related to his health, strength and ability to feed and protect his family, so there is nothing surprising in the desire of modern ladies to see a tall man next to them. This is primarily due to the basic instinct.

A modern men high growth, by the way, have not only this advantage. As proven, they tend to have a higher average income and are easier to move up the career ladder. Scientists associate this with high self-esteem and leadership qualities with such people.

It would seem that large in all respects, representatives of the stronger sex should have a lot of children. But no! As Dutch scientists have found out, the most prolific is a man of average height. By the way, he gets married earlier and has his first child earlier. So in spite of love lovely ladies to tall partners, for some reason they start a family with a man of average height. You can't argue with statistics!

So what is the average height of a man?

The growth of each of us depends on the combination of 180 genes and, of course, on the lifestyle of the mother who carried the child. And then - and from the lifestyle of the person himself. Once the average height of a European man was 160 cm, and our contemporaries stretched out on average to 176 cm.

Over time, the concept of what is the average height of a man in the world has changed a lot. In knightly armor, which are kept in museums in Rome, now only a teenager can fit. Since the height of these warriors did not exceed 167 cm.

The growth of the European has increased by 11 cm

What exactly affects the number of centimeters from crown to heels for each person? It is no secret to anyone that data on the dependence of growth rates on racial affiliation is not a secret. Asians are short people. Their average height is 165 cm, while Europeans grow up to 178 cm.

But not only genetic inheritance determines these parameters. In prosperous countries than where the economy is. After all, the quality of the eaten food, and their variety, and the absence of the need to work hard, along with developed health care, help a person to become taller. This is probably why, until recently, the average height of a man from America was the largest in the world.

According to the observations of researchers, the body length of the average man has increased by 11 cm since the end of the 19th century - from 167 cm to 178 cm.

War is not a hindrance to growth

But, by the way, despite the proven dependence of growth on living standards, it turned out that during the two world wars and the Great Depression, experienced by mankind, average length people's bodies continued to grow. It would seem that growing poverty, lack of food and hardships should have affected the described indicator, but no, this did not happen. On the contrary, the man of average height was getting taller!

Scientists are trying to explain this phenomenon by the fact that people during such periods tried to have fewer children in the family, which means that the number of eaters decreased and the quality of food came to relative norm, and the child grew up unhindered. Although, of course, such arguments do not look convincing. Since food during the war could hardly be brought back to normal. So this fact still remains a mystery, by the way, as well as the increase in the number of born boys before every war.

Perfect growth of partners

But, be that as it may, the average height of a European for last years increased significantly. In this regard, the perceptions of attractiveness have obviously changed as well.

Researchers from the Netherlands conducted a survey of 50,000 young men and women about what should ideally be the growth of a partner, and at the same time how satisfied they are with their growth. It turned out that women seem especially attractive men taller than them by 20 cm, but representatives of the stronger sex will prefer a lady who does not reach their height of only 7.5 cm.

On average, according to the findings of scientists from the University of Groningen, the ideal (that is, desirable for the majority of respondents) average height of a man and a woman in a pair is 190 cm and 175 cm. Yes, high preferences in height!

Growth gap between rich and poor has narrowed

For thirty years scrupulous scientists from Great Britain have been trying to determine the relationship between material well-being and anatomical features each of the people. They now argue that the average height of a man in the world has increased more in 300 years than in the previous several thousand years. So, they emphasize, such a leap speaks of a direct connection of this indicator with material well-being.

So, 200 years ago, representatives of aristocratic families were taller than commoners. At the beginning of the century before last, for example, a 14-year-old teenager from the proletariat did not exceed 130 cm, and his peer from rich family was about 25 cm taller. Our contemporaries rich and poor have 7 cm, which confirms general increase welfare and level of medicine.

What Average Growth Indicators Say

The conclusion that it is the average population growth that is the most accurate indicator of the health of a nation is, of course, correct, but genetics cannot be discounted. The countries of Africa can hardly be classified as economically prosperous, but at the same time, in Tutsis and Nilots, men stretch up to 185 cm, or even up to 2 m, while pygmies do not grow above 150 cm.

True, in a prosperous Holland, the average height of a man is 188 cm. And the fair sex of this country can hardly be called "inch" - they grow up to 177 cm. In Sweden, Denmark and Norway, these showed only a centimeter less.

What is the height of Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian men

Full confirmation of the idea of ​​a direct connection between the parameters of the average growth of a nation and its economic well-being is also noticeable among representatives of the Slavs, who, by the will of fate, live today in different countries.

So, the growth of an average man, a resident of the USSR, in the 70s was 168 cm.And in the 80s, the male population has already grown by 3 cm.

At the beginning of the market reforms, the average Russian reached about 176 cm. The average height of a man in Ukraine is not very different from him either - he is 175.3 cm.

In 1997, Belarusians were slightly lower. They grew up to 174 cm. But in 2008, according to research by the Department of Anthropology, 18-year-old boys were already 177 cm tall. Studies show that since 1925 this nation has grown by 15 cm, which, you see, is quite good. True, this process of rapid growth, once called acceleration, has already stopped. This is especially noticeable among urban residents, while among rural residents it is still continuing.

The average height of men in Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, as well as in other states, of course, closely depends on many indicators. By the way, it was noticed that this can be connected with the level of education of the mother. After all, it is she who organizes the diet and daily routine of her child, which cannot but affect whether the boy will subsequently be a tall enough man.

The average height of a man is a sign of what?

So, as you probably already understood, the average height of residents of different countries and nations can differ. And this can be facilitated by the influence of many factors:

  • genetics (for example, Asians belong to undersized nations, and Scandinavians have always been distinguished by their high growth);
  • the level of well-being in the state (in successful Japan and China - countries originally inhabited by low residents, growth for recent times increased by almost 12 cm, and the average Japanese is now almost the same height as the American);
  • it is not unimportant whether a specific person lives in the city or in the countryside;
  • how the child was carried and raised by the mother;
  • does the person have chronic diseases, which, by the way, are capable of influencing growth, subtracting up to 3 cm on average.

A man of average height in different countries may turn out to be 165 cm and 184 cm in height, while being considered a typical representative of the stronger sex among his fellow citizens.

People who go on vacation to Southeast Asia for the first time often pay attention to a very small stature indigenous people. They seem to us very small in comparison with us. And in which countries do the smallest people live? Where do the giants live?

So, the 5 countries with the tallest men:

  1. Netherlands: 182.5 cm
  2. Belgium: 181.7 cm
  3. Estonia: 181.6 cm
  4. Latvia: 181.4 cm
  5. Denmark: 181.4 cm

As you can see, the tallest men on the planet live in Europe, mainly in the northern part.

5 countries with the tallest women:

  1. Latvia: 169.8 cm
  2. Netherlands: 168.7 cm
  3. Estonia: 168.7 cm
  4. Czech Republic: 168.5 cm
  5. Serbia: 167.7 cm

The tallest women in the world also live in Europe, but there is no longer a clear area, but are distributed from south to north.

Now let's move on to the lowest men:

  1. East Timor: 159.8 cm
  2. Yemen: 159.9 cm
  3. Laos: 160.5 cm
  4. Madagascar: 161.5 cm
  5. Malawi: 162.2 cm

In general, these are residents of Central Africa and Southeast Asia.


5 countries with the lowest women:

  1. Guatemala: 149.4 cm
  2. Philippines: 149.6 cm
  3. Bangladesh: 150.8cm
  4. Nepal: 150.9 cm
  5. East Timor: 151.2 cm

Here, too, are mainly residents of South-East Asia.


In general, in general, there is a tendency, the closer to the equator and the hotter the climate, the lower the indigenous people. And what north of the country, the higher the residents. Also, there is a dependence of population growth with the standard of living, the higher the standard of living, the higher the population, and vice versa, in less developed countries the population is generally below average. Of course, there are exceptions, but in general, such trends are visible.

What are the reasons for these patterns? Most likely due to the fact that in developed countries people work less exhausting physical labor devote more to their health and proper nutrition, go in for sports, medicine, human rights are developed in such countries. In low-developed countries, most of the population is engaged in exhausting physical labor (most often in agriculture), often go hungry, devote less to their health and sports. In addition, a person's height directly depends on where they live, for example, in dense forests and impenetrable jungles, it is easier for a population with a short stature to survive. Thus, continued genetic selection has led to such different results.

In general, there is a tendency towards an increase in average population growth in the world. Over the past 100 years, this indicator has increased in all countries of the world. So over the past 100 years in Iran, Greece and Japan, the average height of men has increased by more than 15 cm. And the average height of women in South Korea by as much as 20 cm! In Russia, the average height of men is 176.5 cm (an increase of 9 cm over 100 years), and of women 165.3 cm (an increase of 12 cm over 100 years). Again, this can be attributed to a sharp increase in the standard of living of the population of the countries.

Scientists believe that the global change in human growth is in waves. In the ancient period, the inhabitants of the developed countries at that time had an increase modern man... Subsequently, the growth of a person decreased and reached a minimum in the Middle Ages. Over the last 200 years goes constant increase in growth. It is believed that in the next 50-100 years, the average height of a person will stop increasing, and perhaps in a few centuries a new decline will begin, initiated by some kind of disease or warriors. But this is all the distant future, which only our great-great-grandchildren will see.

The rest of the countries can be found in ours, in the section "Medicine".

Many people are interested in the question: how much should be normal growth man? Let's try to deal with this issue.

The height of a person is the distance from the top of the head to the plane of the feet. Affects a person's height a large number of various factors, these are: heredity from parents, gender, age, environmental factors, diseases (including hereditary ones), lifestyle.

Ethnicity a person to a particular group, also affects his growth. So, for example, the average (normal) height of the Chinese is 165cm (for men) and 156cm (for women). The Dutch have very different growth rates: 185cm (for men) and 169 (for women). The smallest growth was in the dwarf tribe, which was found in 1970 on the Brazilian-Peruvian border, their height was below 105 cm.The lowest midgets are Juan de la Cruz, his height is 48 cm, and so is Gal Mohammed (57 cm). As for women, the most short stature was 30cm, Pauline Masters. At 9 years old, she weighed 15kg, with a height of 55cm. Most a tall man was Robert Pershing Wadlow, at 22, his height was 272cm, and his arm span was 288cm. Maximum weight, which he had 223kg.

If we talk about humanity growth in general, then it is increasing. For example, in the 1950s, the average height of a person was 165 cm, today this figure has increased by 2.5 cm, the mass has also increased, somewhere by a kilogram. The most big changes occurred in adolescents, because their height has increased by 3.5 cm in comparison with the 1930s. The change in height in people in different eras is called acceleration. For example, the growth of Neanderthals hardly differed from the growth of a man of the XXI century (160-165cm).

Growth hormone is responsible for normal human growth. It is also called growth hormone. Growth hormone secretion decreases with age. Most of it in adolescents during periods of puberty and intense linear growth, and least of all in the elderly and elderly people.

This is how a person's height changes in different years his life:

By the first year of life, men and women grow by 23cm.

By the second year of life, men and women grow by 10 cm per year.

TO fourth year the lives of men and women grow by 7.5 cm per year.

At 5-7 years of age, men and women grow by 5.7 cm per year.

At 7-10 years of age, men grow by 4.3 cm, and women by 4.5 cm per year.

At 10-13 years of age, men grow by 4.5 cm, and women by 5.2 cm per year.

At 13-17 years of age, men grow by 5.1 cm, and women by 3 cm per year.

At the age of 17-19, men grow by 1.5 cm, and women by 0.5 cm per year.

At 19-26 years of age, men grow by 0.5 cm (as a rule, men after 19 do not grow, usually those who have had late puberty grow).

How tall should a person be to be considered normal?

Dwarf height - below 129.9cm for men and below 121.9cm for women

Very small - 130-149.9cm for men and 121-139.9cm for women

Small height - 150-159.9cm for men and 140-148.9cm for women

Below average norm- 160-163.9cm for men and 149-152.9cm for women

Average height - 164-166.9cm for men and 153-155.9cm for women

Above the average norm - 167-169.9 cm in men and 156-158.9 cm in

Human height is one of the indicators that matter for statistics. Such parameters are studied, most often in the medical field, in order to determine the influence of certain factors, as well as in other directions.

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Statistics note that the average height of a person in almost all regions of the planet has increased significantly over the past century and Russia is not in in this case exception.

What you need to know

The average height of a man in Russia over the past decades has become slightly higher. The statistics are such that the increase in body length is made constantly.

So, in the Middle Ages, people throughout the earth were significantly lower than they are now. However, the last century has seen even greater growth rates.

At the same time, growth does not increase uniformly in all regions. It is impossible to say that, for example, throughout the earth, on different continents, in different countries and among different peoples, growth has increased by exactly ten cm.

No, some nationalities are more prone to this factor others less. So, for example, Asia statistically cannot boast of the same increase in growth as Europe, but, nevertheless, some increase in this parameter is observed.

Russia is actually located both in Europe and Asia. This location significantly influenced the culture of the state and its features.

But it should be noted that the titular population of the country, Russians, genetically Europeans and Asian influence in them is at least, no more than in European countries.

If we turn to statistics, we can determine that the average height of a person in Russia has increased in about the same way as in Europe.

This factor indicates that growth is more of a genetic feature, but in this case, the question remains, why in different periods of time the rates of its increase in different peoples differed?

What other factors affect this parameter? Scientists suggest that the following factors have the greatest influence:

To understand exactly what affects a person's height, it is worth turning to biology and medicine. So, the body grows under the influence of growth hormone.

When there is a lot of it, a person grows more, when there is little of it, less, that is, a direct pattern is observed.

Most likely, since the average height of a man in Russia has increased, especially over the past hundred years, there is an increase in the production of this hormone under the influence of various factors - nutrition, ecology, and so on.

Common rubrication of the human body (table)

On this moment Scientists have developed a classification of human height based on existing standards in order to determine which height would be considered normal, large or small.

So, the data looks like this:

Medium height Man Female
Dwarf Less than one and a half meters Less than a meter and forty centimeters
Very low From one and a half meters to one hundred and sixty centimeters Up to one and a half meters
Short Up to one hundred and sixty centimeters
Below the average Up to one hundred seventy four centimeters Up to one hundred sixty three centimeters
Average Up to one hundred seventy seven centimeters Up to one hundred sixty seven centimeters
Above the average Up to one hundred seventy centimeters
High Up to one hundred and ninety centimeters Up to one hundred and eighty centimeters
Very tall Up to two meters Up to one hundred and eighty seven centimeters
Giant Over two meters More than one hundred and eighty seven centimeters

These figures are the average worldwide. So, for example, in many Asian countries the average height of a man does not exceed one hundred and sixty-five, and in some European countries it is more than one hundred and eighty.

The average height of a man in Russia at the moment is about one hundred and seventy-eight centimeters.

At the same time, according to various sources, over the past century, the average growth in our country has increased by ten centimeters.

The influence was exerted by a change in diet, ecology, lifestyle - all these factors rigorously affect the production of growth hormone.

In children, the level of growth hormone is always several times higher than in adults. Adults simply do not need it in such quantities, since the body has already reached its maximum length.

But just in time for children and teenage years, as well as up to 21, and in some cases up to 25 years, it is possible to influence the growth of a person by regulating the amount of this hormone.

Artificial injection of growth hormone can even help in some cases with dwarfism, but only when the patient has not yet reached a certain age... Otherwise, such an intervention in the body will not bring a positive result.

The average height of a man in Russia is currently higher than the average height of a woman. A similar trend is observed in other countries around the world, regardless of the region.

Average growth in Russia is high compared to Asian countries, but lower than in some individual countries.

For example, more high growth from residents of the Netherlands. In the Asian region, indicators also differ, for example, in North Korea average growth is lower than in South, while in Japan this indicator more higher.

In Africa, growth also fluctuates from region to region, for example in the North it is higher than in the Central one.

How can body length change?

It is believed that the average height of all people on earth is constantly increasing. So, the difference between today's rate and growth by the end of the century may be ten centimeters more.

However, it is impossible to give exact data on this matter. Some scientists suggest that a person's height does not always increase, a more accurate position is that he fluctuates.

Throughout history, there have already been periods when the average height of a person was greater than later.

Undoubtedly, the 21st century is marked by the largest indicator, but the situation may change significantly in the future.