Espacio, tiempo y asentamientos en el Valle del Mezquital: un enfoque comparativo con los desarrollos de William T. Sanders

the application in the mezquital valley of the theoretical and methodological model applied by william t. sanders in the basin of mexico has allowed us to learn about some of the socio-cultural dynamics and the types of settlements that could have been established in different time periods in this region. in the pre-classic there were small settlements with chupicuaro and ticoman influence, but, apparently, the mezquital was a region sparsely populated. the settlement of the north-west began during the classic period by xajay groups with possible chupicuaro-mixtlan connections, while groups with teotihuacan affiliation, possibly entering from the southeast, founded towns in the vicinity of tula. by the epiclassic period the teotihuacan sites were abandoned and autonomous systems linked with the coyotlateclo sphere were developed, while the xajay settlements remained occupied especially their civic-ceremonial centers. at this time, the settlement of the dry region beyond the tula river was begun even though the valley does not appear to have been densely populated. with the rise of tula there was an increase in the population of the valley zone that it occupied while in the rest of the region the population density decreased concentrating in specific core villages. in the post-classic the region is dominated by the triple alliance and a strong population increase is observed throughout the valley through systems of disperse settlements and ceremonial centers on hilltops. the presence of the otomi ethno-biological group in these dynamics is evident starting during the epiclassic.