Humanics Ergonomics

Work Anthropometry

Schmidts versus Schneiders

Back in the 13th century, surnames were first used and these were related to occupations.

People who made clothes (tailors) adopted the surname Tailor or Taylor (Schneider in German); people who were blacksmiths took the name Smith (or Schmidt in German).

Smiths were big strong men whereas Tailors were generally smaller and not so strong.

The average mass of Smiths was higher than for Tailors (by about 10 kg back then).

This difference is now down to about 3 kg.

From the Oxford University Press
New Century Senior Physics: Concepts in Context
Richard Walding, Greg Rapkins & Glenn Rossiter (2004)

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