Back when most guitars being made are the smaller instruments we would call "parlor" guitars today, child-sized versions of those guitars were called "3/4-sized" guitars. Today when folks who are used to dreadnoughts come across a "3/4-sized" guitar, they often feel that they're looking at a "1/2" sized guitar or so.
Not only have guitars gotten bigger during the last century, but so have people. Many middle-schoolers are as big as the average adult of a century ago, so they don't necessarily need to start on undersized guitars.
If you have a young student who wants to start guitar, and you're not sure he or she is big enough for a parlor guitar, take him or her to a real music store (the kind that sells band instruments and violins as well as guitars) and get one of the folks there to help you decide. Just don't be surprised if the "3/4" sized guitar he sells you looks to be half the size of most of the guitars on the wall.
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