MÉTODOS ESTADÍSTICOS MULTIVARIANTES EN ANTROPOLOGÍA FÍSICA. VARIABLES MÉTRICAS

Abstract

Furthering our knowledge of interpopulational  variability is one important research line in the f ield of Anthropology. Methods based on the statistical treatment of different metric variables have traditionally been used to determine aff inities and similarities among different skeletal series. For  comparisons among samples of populations, however, multivariate analyses may supply information that the classic univariate and bivariate statistical methods cannot provide. Such techniques include Principal Component Analysis, Factor Analysis, and Clustering, now commonly used when dealing with metric characters. This study presents a practical example in which a Medieval skeletal series from the Alto  Ebro  and Alto Duero (northern Spain) is compared with other samples from the Iberian Peninsula and  one sample from the North of Africa. Our objective is to provide data that will enhance anthropological  understanding of past populations, particularly in terms of interpopulational and intergrupal variability.