Editorial

Abstract

American Anthropology is pleased to present a thematic issue dedicated to Physical Anthropology, a discipline that has a long tradition and that in Latin America has been making contributions to scientific knowledge in two major fields: the study of ancient societies and that of the relationship human being-society-nature in contemporary societies. The first goes to the study of ancient societies, based on the analysis of bone remains found in archaeological contexts. In contrast, in the study of contemporary societies, the society-culture-environment interaction is analyzed to determine the relationship between the human body and the environment. Physical Anthropology relies on interdisciplinary collaboration to generate new knowledge about the biological, social, and cultural characteristics of ancient societies, as has been shown in studies of Mesoamerican and Andean societies.