

THE TAJIN TOTONAC — PART 1 KELLY AND PALERM 



11 



including monolinguals and bilinguals, but not 

 including children of less than 5 years of age 

 (p. 14). In some communities the latter account 

 for close to 20 percent of the population ; accord- 

 ingly, if small children are added to our count, 

 the modern population would exceed that calcu- 

 lated for the sixteenth century. 



With respect to the pre-Conquest population, 

 early estimates are chiefly pueblo by pueblo, and 

 the only figure which may be converted into an 

 approximate subtotal is that for "Cempoala" and 

 environs. This we assume to mean southern 

 Totonacapan, exclusive of the narrow neck about 

 Jalacingo (map 1). For "Cempoala" and vicin- 

 ity, the lowest estimate is 50,000 warriors, which 

 should indicate a total population of 250,000 per- 

 sons (p. 8). Yet, subsequently, sixteenth-century 

 sources credit the pueblos of southern Totonacapan 

 with a combined population which averages less 

 than 16,000 persons. This is about 6 percent of the 

 supposed prewhite population, and the reduction 

 rate may be placed at 16.1 (table 1 ) . 



For northern Totonacapan, there is no such 

 over-all estimate. The 1519 population of Pa- 

 pantla may be placed at 60,000 individuals (No. 29, 

 col. E, table 14, Appendix A) . Here the reduction 

 is even more drastic. Sources allow Papantla 

 a post-Conquest, sixteenth-century population 

 which averages 1,361 individuals, or only 2 per- 

 cent of the alleged prewhite population. We 

 reckon the reduction rate at 44.1 (table 1). 



For the balance of northern Totonacapan, we 

 may hazard a guess. (1) The sixteenth-century 

 averages for "Matlatlan" and Chila are between a 

 fifth and a sixth of the population reported for 

 prewhite days (p. 9). Actually the rate of de- 

 crease for "Matlatlan" is 5.7; for Chila, 5.1; the 

 average is 5.4. We may assume arbitrarily that 

 this latter rate of reduction is applicable generally 

 to northern Totonacapan, exclusive of Papantla. 

 (3) Accordingly, we may total the averages for 

 the remaining pueblos of northern Totonacapan 

 (footnote 3 of table 1 specifies the pueblos whose 

 population averages have been taken from col. H, 

 table 14, Appendix A) ; and to this total (4) we 

 may apply the ratio which holds for "Matlatlan"- 

 Chila. This somewhat unorthodox procedure 

 gives a total of 393,228 persons in northern Toto- 

 nacapan, exclusive of Papantla. 



Table 1. — Population density 



Area 



Southern Totonacapan (ex- 

 clusive of Jalacingo area) ' 



Northern Totonacapan (ex- 

 clusive of Jalacingo area 

 and Papantla) > 



Northern Totonacapan 

 (Papantla only) 6 



Intermediate (Jalacingo 

 area) 8 



Total. 



Population 



1519 



[2250,000] 



[•393,228] 



60,000] 



[< 81, 231] 



764, 459 



2 OT3 

 1 VQ 



. >^ 

 CO °3'" H 



o 



15, 480 



72,820 



1,361 



11,339 



101,000 



16.1 



«5.4 

 44.1 

 55.4 



Terri- 

 torial 

 extent 

 (km.2) 



3,987 

 6,961 



n 



4,740 

 7,612 



Density 



1519 



1 



as 



^ s 



Mod- 

 ern 



as 



a> a 



40 

 41 



i Including the following pueblos, from table 14: 1-3, 5, 6, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 

 16, 18, 19, 21, 23-26, 31, 33-36. 



1 Estimated on the basis of 50,000 warriors reported for "Cempoala" and 

 vicinity, in 1519. 



» Including the following pueblos, from table 14: 7, 11, 14, 22, 38, 39, 41, 42, 

 47-54, 56, 58-60, 62-64, 67-69, 72. 



' Calculated on the basis of the ca. 1550-1610 averages, to which we have 

 applied the ratio of reduction which took place in "Matlatlan" and Chila. 



5 Ratio of reduction demonstrable only for "Matlatlan" and Chila. 



« Pueblo No. 29, table 14, 



' Calculated on the basis of 15,000 vecinos. 



8 Including the following pueblos from table 14: 4, 17, 37. 



The Jalacingo area still is outstanding. Here, 

 arbitrarily, we shall apply the same "Matlatlan"- 

 Chila ratio of 5.4. Since the sixteenth-century 

 population in that zone averages 11,339 we derive 

 61,231 as the hypothetical total at the time of the 

 Spanish Conquest (table 1). 



These calculations are summarized in table 1, 

 where an effort also is made to indicate density of 

 population. Naturally, the territorial extent of 

 ancient Totonacapan (map 1) can be reckoned 

 only approximately. It was calculated first by 

 triangulation, on a 1:500,000 published map 

 (Mexico, Atlas geografico) and then was checked 

 (succeeding column, table 1) by the area given 

 in the 1940 published census for each modern 

 municipal unit which appeared to fall within the 

 limits of sixteenth-century Totonacapan. Mani- 

 festly, in both cases the error must be very con- 

 siderable, for the borders of the ancient province 

 are ill-defined. Accordingly, the figures make no 

 pretense at accuracy, although they permit us to 

 calculate, after a fashion, the approximate density 

 of population in Totonacapan at the time of the 

 Spanish Conquest. 



