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The origin of the state : land productivity or appropriability?
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Mayshar, Joram, Moav, Omer and Pascali , Luigi (2022) The origin of the state : land productivity or appropriability? Journal of Political Economy, 130 (4). pp. 1091-1144. doi:10.1086/718372 ISSN 0022-3808.
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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1086/718372
Abstract
The conventional theory about the origin of the state is that the adoption of farming increased land productivity, which led to the production of food surplus. This surplus was a prerequisite for the emergence of tax-levying elites and, eventually, states. We challenge this theory and propose that hierarchy arose as a result of the shift to dependence on appropriable cereal grains. Our empirical investigation, utilizing multiple data sets spanning several millennia, demonstrates a causal effect of the cultivation of cereals on hierarchy, without finding a similar effect for land productivity. We further support our claims with several case studies.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||||
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| Subjects: | D History General and Old World > D History (General) G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor S Agriculture > SB Plant culture |
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| Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Economics | ||||||||||
| Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | State, The -- Origin, Grain -- History, Dominance (Psychology), Energy development -- History, Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- History | ||||||||||
| Journal or Publication Title: | Journal of Political Economy | ||||||||||
| Publisher: | University of Chicago Press | ||||||||||
| ISSN: | 0022-3808 | ||||||||||
| Official Date: | April 2022 | ||||||||||
| Dates: |
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| Volume: | 130 | ||||||||||
| Number: | 4 | ||||||||||
| Page Range: | pp. 1091-1144 | ||||||||||
| DOI: | 10.1086/718372 | ||||||||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||||
| Reuse Statement (publisher, data, author rights): | © 2021 by [name of copyright holder]. Accepted for publication to Journal of Political Economy on 30/11/2021 | ||||||||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||||||||
| Date of first compliant deposit: | 11 June 2021 | ||||||||||
| Date of first compliant Open Access: | 30 November 2022 | ||||||||||
| Related URLs: |
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