The tallest of the tall

A remark on Nordstjernan’s Facebook page sparked our interest. The issue? Are Swedes really that tall? 

• 

  How tall are you? The average Swedish man is 180.0 cm (5 feet 10.8 inches), making Swedish men number 8 on the list of the tallest in the world - which is topped by the Dutch. The average Swedish woman is 166.9 cm (5 feet 5.7 inches). The tallest man in history, however, was not a Swede but an American: Robert Wadlow (1918-1940) was 2.72 m tall—that’s 8 feet 11.1 inches.

• Well, yes, but not the tallest – as was also pointed out. According to scientific research presented by the International Basketball and Euroleague Forum, the tallest men in the world are the Dutch (where the average height is 184.8 centimeters (6 ' and 0.75 "), followed by the Icelanders (average height: 181.5 cm - 5 ' and 11.45 "), and then Denmark (181.1 cm - 5 ' and 11.29 "), Czech Republic (180.8 cm - 5 ' and 11.18 "), Slovenia (180.3 cm - 5 ' and 10.98 "), Germany (180.3 cm), Norway (180.3 cm) and Sweden (180.0 cm - 5 ' and 10.86 "). Finns are also on average 180.0 cm tall (5 ' and 10.86 "), whereas Americans are 177.6 cm (5 ' and 9.92 ") tall on average.

• 

  Swedes are tall yes, but not the tallest. (Drawing by edupics.com)

• The tallest women can also be found in the Netherlands (average 168.7 cm - 5 ' and 6.41 "), the Icelanders 167.6 cm (5 ' and 5.98 "), the Norwegians 167.2 cm (5 ' and 5.82 "), the Swedes 166.9 cm (5 ' and 5.70 "), the Danes 165.2 cm (5 ' and 5.03 ") and the Finnish ladies 164.7 cm (5 ' and 4.84 ").

• Interestingly in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Europeans in North America were far taller than those in Europe and were the tallest in the world. The original indigenous population of the Plains Native Americans were also among the tallest populations of the world at the time. Several nations, including many nations in Europe, have now surpassed the US, particularly, as the above information attests, the Netherlands, and Scandinavian nations.