Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to assess the validity of some methods currently being used to interpret the demographic evidence from the ancient world. For example, it has been claimed that during the Hellenistic and Roman eras, birth rates were 40/1,000/year, death rates 36/1,000/year, and that 10% of healthy infants were killed, raising the death rate to 40/1,000/year; the claims rest on comparative material and anecdotes from literary sources. This paper will question the use of comparative material from modern primitive societies as ‘evidence’ for Greece and Rome, and the value of anecdotes for elucidating ancient demographic structure and population policies.