Decline and Population Dispersal of the Tiwanaku Civilization

Name: Decline and Population Dispersal of the Tiwanaku Civilization
Start: 1071
End: 1080

Type Event Region South America Time c. 1071–1080

Around the 1070s, after a millennium of prosperity, Tiwanaku entered clear decline as drought and agricultural stress reduced the capital's populatio…

Timeline

c. 1071–1075Raised-field agricultural areas around Copacabana · La Paz DepartmentLake sediment and ice-core records show persistent drought caused water levels to retreat, reducing output from traditional raised-field and terrace agriculture and eroding the food base sustaining the capital's population.
c. 1075–1080Kalasasaya and the Akapana pyramid · La Paz DepartmentLate strata show large stone buildings lacking systematic repair and reduced residential density, indicating that elite and commoner populations were migrating from the highland capital to other ecological zones.

Sources

Tiwanaku and Its Hinterland: Archaeology and Paleoecology of an Andean Civilization, Vol. 1 — Alan L. Kolata (1993)
Ancient Tiwanaku — John Wayne Janusek (2008)