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"One can only assume that the older population figures should be taken as approximations and that the exact determination of what constitutes a vassal state is
by lainga 8y ago
"One can only assume that the older population figures should be taken as approximations and that the exact determination of what constitutes a vassal state is subjective in some instances."
- ekianjo 8y agoWhy put exact numbers on the map then? The right thing to do would be to put estimated ranges.
- ckarmann 8y agoBut we don't have ranges. It's not like a physical measurement where we know that the actual value falls in a certain range with a Gaussian distribution. In history we have disparate sources, often contradicting each other when you have more than one and historians try to figure out which is the most reliable. So all you can say is that you have approximations. It's not "frivolous", they are figures that are interesting for themselves because you can still see trends (like which Empire was dominant, or how depopulation starts to creep down in the late Roman Empire), with the caveat that the figures are "to the best of our knowledge".