Final answer:
The claim that Tikal was the last Mayan city before the decline is false; it was part of a federation of city-states. Mayan civilization decline involved complex factors and may have started around the tenth century CE, but the Mayan people and culture persist.
Step-by-step explanation:
False. Instead, the Maya civilization consisted of a loose federation of city-states that included Tikal, as well as Palenque, Calakmul, Caracol, Mayapan and others. These city-states often engaged in shifting alliances, wars, and other forms of diplomacy. Incidents of warfare and other factors such as environmental stress contributed to the decline of several large Mayan cities around the tenth century CE. It is important to note that while the urban centers and the political systems that supported them did undergo significant decline, the Mayan people did not disappear, and their descendants continue to live in the region and maintain cultural traditions.