Which historian estimated that Hispaniola's population declined to 200,000?

Which historian estimated that Hispaniola's population declined to 200,000?

• A. Las Casas
• B. Winthrop
• C. Percy
• D. Stannard

Answer: (D)

Understanding how scholars estimate population change after contact helps you see why some numbers wind up being cited more than others. David E. Stannard is the historian linked to the figure that Hispaniola’s population declined to about 200,000 after European contact. In his work, notably American Holocaust, he argues that the Taíno population on the island collapsed so dramatically due to a combination of introduced diseases—such as smallpox, measles, and influenza—along with brutal labor systems, violence, and social disruption brought by conquest and colonial rule. This perspective emphasizes the scale of demographic collapse as a key consequence of contact and colonization. Bartolomé de Las Casas, a 16th‑century cleric, did write vividly about the cruelty and suffering of indigenous peoples, and his accounts influenced later views on the impact of colonization, but his writings aren’t the precise source of the 200,000 figure. The other names listed are not tied to this specific demographic estimate for Hispaniola.

Understanding how scholars estimate population change after contact helps you see why some numbers wind up being cited more than others. David E. Stannard is the historian linked to the figure that Hispaniola’s population declined to about 200,000 after European contact. In his work, notably American Holocaust, he argues that the Taíno population on the island collapsed so dramatically due to a combination of introduced diseases—such as smallpox, measles, and influenza—along with brutal labor systems, violence, and social disruption brought by conquest and colonial rule. This perspective emphasizes the scale of demographic collapse as a key consequence of contact and colonization.

Bartolomé de Las Casas, a 16th‑century cleric, did write vividly about the cruelty and suffering of indigenous peoples, and his accounts influenced later views on the impact of colonization, but his writings aren’t the precise source of the 200,000 figure. The other names listed are not tied to this specific demographic estimate for Hispaniola.