The Human Factor

Abstract

This book establishes a foundation for the study of ancient demography in the Iberian peninsula, focusing on its largest province, Hispania Citerior (renamed as Tarraconensis in the Early Empire). The authors follow a multidisciplinary approach that includes compiled archaeological, epigraphic, architectonic, osteological, and genetic datasets. Their integration and interpretation provide cutting-edge research and methodology in this area, and fills a gap in the scholarly literature, as no comprehensive work currently exists on the topic in English, Spanish, or any other language. This comprehensive and detailed study of a single province is necessary to generate accurate demographic estimates and to compare it with datasets from other regions and historical periods. By examining the province of Hispania Citerior/Tarraconensis in depth, the authors provide a detailed understanding of demographic patterns, urbanism, and urbanization rates over time, and link them with the social, cultural, and economic factors that affected the Iberian peninsula and the western Mediterranean from the fourth century BCE until the end of the Roman period. For instance, population size was a significant indicator of economic growth and performance, and the distribution of people between urban and rural areas played a vital role in the negotiation and construction of collective identities. Additionally, human mobility promoted cultural change and mediated information and technological flows. The volume provides the first comprehensive, state-of-the-art demographic analysis of the Iberian peninsula from the late Iron Age down to the end of the Roman period, including diachronic comparisons between different cultures and a significant number of case studies. By doing so, the authors provide new methodological approaches and insights into demographic patterns and their impact on ancient societies, allowing for a more nuanced understanding of the ancient Mediterranean.