Distinguishing Male & Female Skulls: Beyond DNA

[Ali Inam]

Hi,

I am a student of Biomedical Engineering and am new to Biology and ofcourse, to Human Anatomy.

I have been studying Human Skull for the last two weeks now and a question kept ticking me throughout.

What really is the main difference between a Male Skull and a Female Skull ? !

I know that we can identify it from the DNA, but is there any other way to find out ? !
Just like it is in the measurement of the Spinal Cord.

Cheers !

 

[hypatia]

First we consider the two regions, the cranial and the facial. The male cranial shows a more massive, sometimes considered blocked shape. But it is the facial bones that really show the difference.

Because of hormone differences, the male mandible is squared, while the female is more rounded. The margin of the female brow ridge is sharper, while the males is dull. Also their is a more pronounced zygomatic bone in the male skull.