Patterns of rural population growth show a long buildup in the Preclassic to about 5 percent of the maximum eventually reached. This growth takes about 850 years to accomplish and is likely the result of natural increase. An apparent drop of about 69 percent takes place at the end of the Late Preclassic but a strong recovery follows in Early Classic 2-3, building to a new high of about 130,320 people. This is the first population surge in the region and represents about a 2,300 percent increase in a period of about 150 years. A combination of immigration into the region and natural increase are suggested as the cause of this first surge. A second population drop takes place at the end of the Early Classic during the Hiatus, a diminution of about 73 percent in a period of about 100 years.
Combined Population Histories; Three Rivers Region
75.5 Population chart for the Three Rivers region based on data in Table L The lower line specifies the elite class fraction, while the upper line is inclusive and indicates the total population. The display is logarithmic.
Thereafter comes the second population surge, which builds to a maximum of about 427,760 within 125 years, a gain of about 1,100 percent. This rise is almost certainly a result of immigration from outside the region, but what fraction is to be allocated to that factor and how much to natural increase can only be estimated with present data. A decline in the Terminal Classic (Late Classic 3) period is on the order of 53 percent for about 100 years, and the decline in rural population continues thereafter without recovery to less than the 11 percent level by a. d. 1250.
World History
