Bioarchaeology as a Means to Understand Human Health and Disease in Ancient Human Populations

Abstract

In anthropology bioarchaeology incorporates an interdisciplinary biocultural approach with cross cultural perspective. The term tries to understand the adaptations and evolutions of social systems in the ancient past. The term bioarchaeology was first coined by British archaeologist Graham Clark in 1972 as a reference to zooarchaeology or the study of animal bones from excavated archaeological sites. Jane Buikstra redefined the term in 1977 which refers to the scientific study of human remains from archaeological sites, a discipline which was earlier known in other countries as osteoarchaeology or palaeo-osteology.