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Has there been a 9 foot tall man or woman before?

Has there been a 9 foot tall man or woman before?

9 feet is not a very common height at all. In fact, in recorded human history, there is only one man who has come close to being 9ft tall. More on him later.

Why is this?

Well, when you consider that 9 feet is well over 3 and a half feet taller than the average height for women in the US, you can see why being 9 foot tall is virtually impossible for a human.

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How tall is 9 feet compared to a human?

A tall man standing next to a short man

Compared to a human, 9 feet tall looks absolutely gigantic and almost unbelievable. 

To be specific, a 9ft man would be 3 feet 3 inches (or 39 inches) taller than the average guy and 3 feet 8 inches (or 44 inches) taller than the average woman.

If a 9 ft man stood next to a regular person—even a pretty tall person—then the regular guy would look like a child next to his dad rather than an adult.

When you consider that 6 ft (a height 3 feet shorter than our 9 ft example) is considered pretty tall, you begin to realize why it’s almost impossible for a 9 feet tall person to exist.

Has there ever been a 9 foot tall man?

While there has never been a true 9 foot tall man, there was a remarkable young man who was less than an inch away from being a 9 foot man.

This man was called Robert Wadlow, who stood at an astonishing 8ft 11.1in. [1]

Had he not died at the young age of 22, it’s likely that Robert would have been the first verified 9ft tall man.

Still, despite not having quite reached a 9’0 height, Robert is often still referred to as the 9 foot man. And rightly so, in my opinion. After all, Robert’s impressive height was much closer to 9 feet than 8 feet!

Has there been a 9 ft tall woman before?

A woman holding a measuring tape

Although there have been a few claims detailing the sighting of a 9 ft tall woman, these claims were later deemed to be false.

Additionally, while there have been some remarkably tall women in human history, it can be difficult to accurately estimate a person’s height when they’re extremely tall.

So even if you think that you saw a 9 foot woman, it’s likely that, while exceptionally tall, she was probably much shorter than 9 feet.

Since heights above 7 foot are an extremely uncommon sight, it can be hard for the brain to make accurate guesses, leading to massive overestimations in many cases. 

Will we ever see another 9 foot tall person?

A giant man standing next to a much shorter man

Firstly, I want to say that the existence of another 9 feet tall man is not a complete impossibility.

However, it’s unlikely for one main reason: Medical developments.

Children who have problems with their growth and pituitary glands can be effectively treated nowadays, meaning that they’re very unlikely to reach the towing height of 9 feet.

Sure, some children might still grow to exceptional heights, but thanks to advances in medicine, it really is unlikely that we’ll see another 9ft tall person in human history unless they don’t receive treatment for their growth-related disorders. 

In conclusion

Just when you think that basketball players are tall, you see photos of the 9 foot tall man Robert Wadlow. At first, these photos might be hard to believe, but when you see the rare video footage, his record-breaking stature becomes indisputable.

There has never been a 9 feet tall woman before, and it’s unlikely that we’ll ever see a 9 feet tall person again. That granted, we can still marvel at the giant men and women who have been and who continue to come into the limelight.

References

  1. Atwal, S. (2022, June 30). The tragic death of Robert Wadlow, the tallest man ever. Guinness World Records. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2022/6/the-tragic-death-of-robert-wadlow-the-tallest-man-ever-708849