Agriculture and residential site structure among campesinos in southern Veracruz, Mexico: A foundation for archaeological inference

This study is based on ethnoarchaeological fieldwork conducted among peasant agriculturalists living in the Sierra de los Tuxtlas of southern Veracruz, Mexico. The research was carried out with the goal of identifying the material correlates of a system of intensive agricultural production in a densely populated tropical setting. The study presents information on campesino land use systems, household economy, residential site structure, house lot refuse management, and subsurface debris distributions.;The tropical farmer's residential lot, at the center of the local farming system, forms the basis for the Household Garden-Residence Association model (HGRA) which relates the use of residential space to the contents and physical structure of the house lot. The HGRA contains four spatial components of archaeological relevance including the structural core, a swept patio or clear area, a zone of refuse and debris build-up referred to as the intermediate area, and a house lot garden area at the periphery of the lot.;Analyses of data from the Tuxtlas household sample suggest that the spatial components of the house lot expand and contract in response to activities conducted by household within the house lot as well as agricultural practices and economic conditions outside of the house lot. Excavations conducted within occupied house lots show that the weight and distribution of debris preserved below the surface of the house lot conform well with the expectations of the HGRA model. In general, the research identifies methods of analysis and properties of residential site structure which can be implemented by archaeologists to reconstruct important elements of prehistoric agriculture, economy, and settlement.;Campesino farmers in the Tuxtlas region engage in a mixed economy of subsistence agriculture and wage labor. Local agricultural production is generally based on a system of infield-outfield cultivation where a variety of land use techniques are employed at varying distances from the residence. The organization of agricultural production, particularly the intensity of cultivation, varies greatly within the territories utilized by campesino communities depending on environmental and economic conditions.