Discovering Chinese Economic History from Footnotes: the Living Tale of a Private Merchant Archive (1800-1850)

Debin Ma and Weipeng Yuan
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Debin Ma: London School of Economics
Weipeng Yuan: Chinese Academy of Social Science, Beijing

CAGE Online Working Paper Series from Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE)

Abstract: This article recounts our unique encounter –through the last seven years of our research - with the Tong Taisheng (统泰升) merchant account books in the Ninjing county of Northern China in 1800-1850. By tracing the personal history of the original owner or donor, we address a large historiographical and epistemological issue behind the current Great Divergence debate on why Industrial Revolution occurred in England but not in China. Our article showcases how the development of political ideology and academic discipline in the modern era impacts our understanding of historical statistics and realities of the early modern era, a critical issue largely neglected in the current Great Divergence debate.

Keywords: Industrial; Revolution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-gro and nep-his
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