Prehistoric rural population trends in Central Chiapas, Mexic

To understand the development of the High Civilizations in Mesoamerica, it is necessary to study the core centers, as well as rural communities, because they conform an entire system. The present research is focused on the regional population trends of two small marginal valleys along the Grijalva River in Central Chiapas, Mexico.;This study is based on the surface data collected in the Archaeological salvage project carried out during the construction of the Chicoasen Hydroelectric Reservoir in the Upper and Middle Grijalva during 1979-1980.;The settlement pattern data are analyzed to determine the kind of population trends that took place throughout time since the first occupations until the Late Postclassic Period. It is also analyzed the relationship of these valleys and the other Central Chiapas subregions, as well as, with the Mesoamerican core areas.;The importance of this work is that I have studied the largest sample of sites that has ever been studied in Central Chiapas. This sample demonstrates that population trends in two areas peripheral to the Mayan sphere are quite different from population trends in the Maya core area, and from the other core centres of Mesoamerica Civilization.;During the Formative Period, population growth was similar to that in the core areas, but by the end of this period there was a strong decline that lasted until the Late Classic Period. It was during the Late Classic Period that population curve reached its peak, suggesting that these marginal regions were probably receiving populations from large centers that were being abandoned. During this period every place in my research area that was suitable for human habitation was occupied. For the Postclassic Period there was a moderate decrease in population.