Abstract This article provides a preliminary historical survey of Brazilian biological anthropology from the second half of the twentieth century. Even today, little historiographic information on the last 50 or 60 years is available and/or has been explored, while few allusions to bioanthropology can be found in existing works on the history and contemporary state of anthropology in Brazil; this article attempts to span this gap. The first section examines various aspects of the general development of biological anthropology as it radiated from the centers (Europe and the United States) outward over time. This initial survey affords a clearer understanding of the Brazilian case, which is the topic of the second section. This is followed by a brief historical and bibliographic account of the most recent state of biological anthropology in the country, including a number of specialized areas of research. The article concludes with a short discussion of the material covered.