When talking about global benchmarks, people use the term "global standard." A standard means a "norm." A standard is a promise that spans the economy, industry, and technology. Technological progress can make a "standard" necessary, but a single standard can also drive a leap tantamount to a revolution. The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards and ChosunBiz selected the "top 10 standards that changed the world" and the "top 10 standards that changed the lives and economy of Koreans" based on a survey of experts from industry, academia, research, and the media, and cast new light on the role of standards. [Editor's note]
Even if you take the same subway line at around the same time every day, sometimes the seat feels wide and sometimes it feels cramped. It is not only because of a neighbor's weight or a thick coat. Seat widths differ by train car: ▲480 mm ▲450 mm ▲435 mm. The newer the train, the wider the seats. As Korean body types have become more Westernized and average waist circumference has increased, wider-seated trains have been introduced to reflect that change.
The reason facilities closely tied to daily life, like the subway, can reflect changes in Korean body types is thanks to the government-led "Korean anthropometric survey." The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources' Korean Agency for Technology and Standards measures and standardizes some 20 body dimensions—such as height and circumferences and widths by body part—by age group on a four- to five-year cycle. The agency builds anthropometric standard information databases (DB) and distributes them to industry, academia, and research. Based on this information, corporations use it to design various products—such as eyeglasses, bicycles, seat belts, and desks—ergonomically.
The first time the Korean government measured Korean body dimensions was in 1979. At the time, the M1 rifle received as aid from the United States was reportedly too large and heavy for Koreans. As domestic production of goods began to rise around then, voices grew to produce not only weapons but also various furniture and household items to fit our body types. In response, a body measurement survey called the "national standard body size survey" began.
Based on this survey, the "standard Korean body type" is established. According to the most recent results announced in 2022, the average height of Koreans is 172.5 cm for men and 159.6 cm for women. Compared with the first survey in 1979, men are 6.4 cm taller and women are 5.3 cm taller. The proportion of leg length to total height rose from 43.7% in 2003, when this item was first measured for men, to 45.3%, and for women from 44.4% to 45.8%. In contrast, the ratio of height to face length has remained similar at 7.2–7.3 since the 1990s. This means Koreans have long averaged a seven-heads-tall figure.