Modeling prehistoric populations: The case of Neolithic Brittany

The study of prehistoric demography draws inevitably on evidence both imper fect and incomplete, yet is essential for a satisfactory understanding of p ast communities. It is particularly valuable in addressing controversial qu estions such as the nature of early farming communities in western Europe, in the period between the adoption of domestic plants and animals and the e stablishment, centuries or millennia later, of permanent villages and regul ar field systems. In this article the demography of prehistoric Brittany is considered in light of evidence presented by monumental tombs and stone se ttings, artifact distributions, palaeoenvironmental determinations, and dom estic remains. Whereas the megalithic monuments of Brittany are well known and have been the focus of systematic research since the mid-19th century, relatively little attempt has been made to situate them in their demographi c context. The results of this study reveal that while Brittany is, like ev ery region, unique in terms of climate, soils, and social traditions, it sh ares several significant features of demographic patterning-notably its cyc lical character-with other areas of Neolithic Europe. This study also demon strates how incomplete data sources can be used in combination to provide n ew interpretations of prehistoric demographic patterning and to frame new r esearch questions. (C) 2001 Academic Press.