Anthropometry is an important branch of anthropology. This paper begins from the initial stage of anthropometry in the 18th century, introduces the main European scientists who promoted the development of anthropometry and several important international conferences of prehistoric anthropology and archaeology, and presents the new methods of anthropometry in recent years. Regarding the beginnings and development of anthropometry in China, after introducing the work of foreign scholars (Ryuzo Torii, Sergei M. Shirokogoroff, etc.), this paper focuses on Mr. Wu Dingliang’s pioneering work in Chinese physical anthropology. This paper analyzes the reasons for the rapid development of anthropometry in the 1980s, and reviews the initial period, vigorous development period, bottleneck period and leap-forward development period of China’s anthropometry research in the past 40 years. The author discusses the significance and function of the living population in anthropometry.