Precursors of the criminal anthropology

In the late nineteenth century in Spain the criminal anthropology emerged from Krausism, which synthesised the two hegemonic paradigms of the time, namely Positivism and Evolutionism. Naturalists, doctors, and lawyers were interested in elucidating issues such as the animality of the human being and the particularity of its attributes in understanding human behaviour. In this scientific sphere, we pay special attention to studies made by Rafael Salillas on the social environment of criminals and his institutionalizing work of criminal anthropology. In the 20th century we focus on the work of Julio Caro Baroja to set the epistemological status of this discipline.