# The Shortest Person You Know **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 17, 2003, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621 "2003-12-17T21:38:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AvariceAngel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/958977/32.png) [@AvariceAngel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AvariceAngel)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/1 "2003-12-17T21:38:19Z")
Who is the shortest (fully grown) person you know? In my case, it’d have to be me…I’m a 17 year-old female and 4’11…5’ if I’m lucky. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/2 "2003-12-17T21:49:49Z")
My SO, a 39-year-old female who is about 5’2". ---
**Author:** ![foxymoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d26b3c/32.png) [@foxymoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foxymoron)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/3 "2003-12-17T21:55:47Z")
My sister-in-law and one of my closest friends are both 4’ 10". That friend’s mother is 4’ 9", so I guess she would be the shortest adult (who is not a dwarf/little person) that I know. ---
**Author:** ![Nichol\_storm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Nichol\_storm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nichol_storm)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/4 "2003-12-17T23:50:26Z")
A guy I worked with’s mother was so short I originally thought she was a dwarf. I’m pretty sure she’s not but she could disappear easily into a crowd of ten-year-olds. A friend of mine is about 4’11 and small-framed at that. I could stick her under my arm and tote her around if I cared to. We joke sometimes about stashing her in a rolling suitcase and sneaking her onto a plane that way. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Papaveraceae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e8c25b/32.png) [@Papaveraceae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Papaveraceae)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2003, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/5 "2003-12-17T23:54:37Z")
My mom is 5’ even. I don’t think I’ve known anyone shorter. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/6 "2003-12-18T02:24:35Z")
I work with someone who is 4’10". And one of the restaurants I frequent has a hostess who’s shorter (I think), maybe 4’8". ---
**Author:** ![The13thUnicorn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85e7bf/32.png) [@The13thUnicorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The13thUnicorn)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/7 "2003-12-18T02:49:51Z")
I work with a whole bunch of Philipina ladies who are all under 5 feet, but I once worked with a lady who was only 4’7" and was white. At 5’8" I often feel like a giant at work, but I really feel sorry for my one co-worker who is really large and is 6’2" or 3", he is scared of killing them! ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/8 "2003-12-18T03:09:42Z")
There was this young girl at the OfficeMax store in my town. She was so small it was jolting. I’m guessing abut 4 foot 5-6 or so and perfectly proportioned. ---
**Author:** ![Standup\_Karmic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac91a4/32.png) [@Standup\_Karmic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Standup_Karmic)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/9 "2003-12-18T03:14:49Z")
My dear ol’ Ma is 4’10". She used to be ove an inch taller, but gravity has worked its wonders on her over the past 70+ years. I’m fairly wee for a guy at 5’ 5.5", but I’m a giant next to her. ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/10 "2003-12-18T03:33:39Z")
My friend Melissa is 4’9" at 21. ---
**Author:** ![Spatula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Spatula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spatula)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/11 "2003-12-18T04:06:40Z")
My english teacher is 4’11". ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/12 "2003-12-18T04:15:34Z")
I am 6’4" and a bit, and correspondingly thickset, steelplated BIG, and downright huge… …a good friend of mine is a Vietnamese woman who is four foot nuthin’ and so slightly built that she’d blow away in a cross wind… Sorry, I’m going to have to revert to my native metric system… I’m 125kg. She’s about 40. We’re good mates too. I look out for her. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/13 "2003-12-18T04:16:52Z")
I don’t know her but I sometimes see a woman around Parramatta who I’m sure is well less than 4 feet tall. She is slim and attractive. Whenever I have seen her she has been dressed in what seem very expensive business clothes which I assume are tailor made. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/14 "2003-12-18T04:17:33Z")
Mom 4’10". Little Sister 5’ even. I’m 5’7" We don’t play basketball at my house ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/15 "2003-12-18T09:24:10Z")
I know plenty of little people. The shortest one I can think of is around 2’8". I’m sure if **whiterabbit** posts here, she’ll have me beat. For more information on little people check out [http://www.lpaonline.org/](http://www.lpaonline.org/) And I’m happy that no one here has used the word “midget” - it’s considered very offensive . ---
**Author:** ![CorBlimeyGuvnor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@CorBlimeyGuvnor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CorBlimeyGuvnor)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/16 "2003-12-18T13:13:15Z")
my daughter who is 17 years is 4’11", its amazing how she can get on the bus and pay the childs fare, even though she is coming home from a night out with her 18+ year old friends who are all obviously a little worse for the demon drink. ---
**Author:** ![Lockz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Lockz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lockz)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/17 "2003-12-18T13:56:11Z")
My SO is 5’0", maybe 5’1" if she’s measured at the right time of the day. I’m sure I’ve seen smaller people, but never asked for their height; and I’m usually the smallest one around anyways at 5’5". ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/18 "2003-12-18T14:11:47Z")
One of my coworkers at a factory I used to work was a midget. A rather pretty one, actually. Anyway, she had the misfortune of one day screwing up a bleach job and using a really poor grade of tanning solution. Poor girl looked like an oompaloompa for a few weeks… Non-midget people, though…hmmm…an old lady who used to work at my current job was probably about 4’8". She was rather tiny. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/19 "2003-12-18T14:13:16Z")
Oh, **Tapioca**. I apologize for using midget. Now that I’m aware it’s offensive I’ll make sure never to use it. Sorry about that. Argh. Foot in mouth. Embedded firmly… ---
**Author:** ![Vixenation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/278dde/32.png) [@Vixenation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vixenation)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2003, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621/20 "2003-12-18T14:47:05Z")
The shortest people I know are my sister and her sisters friend (both 17, both around 5’). I guess that really isn’t that short, but still. They’re given to wearing heels, nice clothes, make-up, and hair done, so most people think they’re actually around 20, despite their short height. Go figure. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-shortest-person-you-know/219621.md?page=2)