Measuring living standards from the lowest: Height of the male Hangryu deceased in colonial Korea

Duol Kim and Heejin Park

Explorations in Economic History, 2011, vol. 48, issue 4, 590-599

Abstract: The living standards in Korea during the colonial period (1910–1945) have been debated for a long time. We explored this problem using the height of the Hangryu deceased, a dead person who did not have any acquaintances to claim the body. We found that the height of male Hangryu deceased, ages 25 to 30, increased by 2.2 cm during the colonial period. This result is consistent with recent quantitative studies measuring income levels or demographic information. However, questions such as when this growth in height started and what initiated this pattern need further investigation.

Keywords: The Hangryu deceased; Colonial Korea; Biological living standard; Height (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I00 N01 N35 O53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:exehis:v:48:y:2011:i:4:p:590-599

DOI: 10.1016/j.eeh.2011.08.001

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