Family Size, Prehistoric Population Estimates, and the Ancient Maya

Abstract

Current interest among anthropologists in population size as a major independent variable makes it likely that attempts will be made to estimate the size of populations resident at various prehistoric sites at particular points in time in Mesoamerica. Such estimates are likely to depend on some notion of the average number of people resident in a single house. The problem of arriving at such a statistic is illustrated for the Classic Maya site of Tikal, Guatemala. A consideration of demographic data from Tikal and modern Yucatán Maya communities, as well as information on household composition in sixteenth century Yucatán are reviewed which suggests that it is best to assume that each individual dwelling within a prehistoric household group at Tikal was inhabited by an average of 5 people. This requires some slight modification of previously published population estimates for Tikal and Mayapan, which relied on a base figure of 5.6 people per house.

American archaeology and physical anthropology in historical perspective

“…The use of a demographic approach is important not only for population estimates and descriptions on an extended "stage-level" scale, i.e., population estimates related to major types or shifts in systems of food production, but more impor-tantly for the demographic detail at particular sites in the context of particular social and ecological factors (e.g., Haviland, 1969Haviland, , 1972. Such studies of whole populations in which the skeleton represents a part of a cultural systeman artifact in a functional senseare of different sorts, of course.…”

Estimating population size, density and dynamics of Pre-Pottery Neolithic villages in the central and southern Levant: an analysis of Beidha, southern Jordan

“…Nuclear families are often considered to represent the main dwelling unit in Neolithic societies (Byrd 2002;Düring 2001;Haviland 1972;Kramer 1982;Sweet 1960). However, this analysis indicates that nuclear family dwelling units may not have occurred within some PPN settlements.…”

“…The most significant findings from this analysis relate to the suitability of the settlement population density coefficient (SPDC) method and commonly utilized SPDCs for estimating population parameters; and the theory that nuclear families typified the dwelling unit at Beidha and other PPN villages (Byrd 2002; Haviland 1972;Kramer 1982;Sweet 1960). The SPDC method has been the primary method for estimating PPN central and southern Levantine village populations.…”

Detection of significant demographic differences between subpopulations of prehispanic Maya from Copan, Honduras, by survival analysis

“…Haviland (1972b) found this pattern at the Maya site of Tikal as well, and interpreted it as reflecting increased mortality associated in some way with childbirth and/or other stresses related to childrearing. The SDF is higher and hazard is f ower for Type 1/ Aggregate population must have had P ower lack o P statistical significance supports rehigher for males than for females between the ages of 32.5 and 37.5.…”