Estimating regional GDP in Italy (1871-2001): sources, methodology and results.

This paper presents new estimates of Italian regional GDP for the years 1871, 1881 1891, 1901, 1911, 1938 and 1951. This allows us to draw a long term picture of regional development of the country, from the years following national unification to the advent of Euro in 2001.Industrialization; Regional inequality; Regional income; Economic growth;

Regional value added in Italy over the long run (1891-2001): linking indirect estimates with official figures, and implications

This paper presents value added estimates for the Italian regions, in benchmark years from 1891 until 1951, which are linked to those from official figures available from 1971 in order to offer a long-term picture. Sources and methodology are documented and discussed, whilst regional activity rates and productivity are also presented and compared. Thus some questions are briefly reconsidered: the origins and extent of the north-south divide, the role of migration and regional policy in shaping the pattern of regional inequality, the importance of social capital, and the positioning of Italy in the international debate on regional convergence, where it stands out for the long run persistence of its disparities.Italy, regional growth, convergence, productivity

Regional value added in Italy (1891-2001) : estimates, elaborations.

The aim of this paper is to present and discuss the pattern of regional inequality in Italy, from the end of the nineteenth century until our days. Value added estimates for the Italian regions, in benchmark years from 1891 until 1951, are linked to those from official figures available from 1971, in order to offer a long-term picture. It is worth anticipating that 1891-1951 estimates are not entirely satisfactory yet (sources and methodologies used for 1891-1951 estimates are explained in some detail in the final appendix). However, at the present stage of research they are comparable to those available for other countries; further refinements can hardly be produced in the short run, while it seems reasonable to think that they would not change significantly the overall pattern. In short, present estimates allow us to set the Italian case within the international context and to draw the basic lines of a long-term picture.Industrialization; Regional inequality; Regional income; Economic growth;

Regional inequalities in Italy in the long run (1891-2001): the pattern and some ideas to explain it

The article in the first instance aims to present the pattern of regional inequality in Italy over the long run, through benchmark years, for what regards per capita value added, but also human capital (education) and social capital. Secondly, the Italian case is discussed in view of the neoclassical approach, which incorporates human and social capital as conditioning variables in a long term production function, through both cross-section and dynamic panel regressions. The results are compared with those from descriptive statistics, concluding that the neoclassical modelling can hardly add something more to a mere correlation evidence. As a consequence, this paper explores the viability of alternative approaches, which should properly consider historical changes in technology, in institutions and in the production function, and briefly reviews the research to come in order to implement a dynamic model

Regional value added in Italy over the long run (1891-2001) : linking indirect estimates with official figures, and implications

This paper presents value added estimates for the Italian regions, in benchmark years from 1891 until 1951, which are linked to those from official figures available from 1971 in order to offer a long-term picture. Sources and methodology are documented and discussed, whilst regional activity rates and productivity are also presented and compared. Thus some questions are briefly reconsidered: the origins and extent of the north-south divide, the role of migration and regional policy in shaping the pattern of regional inequality, the importance of social capital, and the positioning of Italy in the international debate on regional convergence, where it stands out for the long run persistence of its disparities

Regional value added in Italy (1891-2001) : estimates, elaborations

The aim of this paper is to present and discuss the pattern of regional inequality in Italy, from the end of the nineteenth century until our days. Value added estimates for the Italian regions, in benchmark years from 1891 until 1951, are linked to those from official figures available from 1971, in order to offer a long-term picture. It is worth anticipating that 1891-1951 estimates are not entirely satisfactory yet (sources and methodologies used for 1891-1951 estimates are explained in some detail in the final appendix). However, at the present stage of research they are comparable to those available for other countries; further refinements can hardly be produced in the short run, while it seems reasonable to think that they would not change significantly the overall pattern. In short, present estimates allow us to set the Italian case within the international context and to draw the basic lines of a long-term picture

Estimating regional GDP in Italy (1871-2001): sources, methodology and results

This paper presents new estimates of Italian regional GDP for the years 1871, 1881 1891, 1901, 1911, 1938 and 1951. This allows us to draw a long term picture of regional development of the country, from the years following national unification to the advent of Euro in 2001

GDP and life expectancy in Italy and Spain over the long run: A time-series approach

Background: A growing body of literature focuses on the relationship between life expectancy and GDP per capita. However, available studies to date are overwhelmingly based on either cross-country or cross-sectional data. We address the issue from a novel, more historically grounded approach, i.e., comparing long-run consistent time series. Objective: To investigate what, if any, is the causal link between life expectancy and GDP. Methods: We provide consistent and updated long-term yearly time series of GDP and life expectancy for Italy and Spain and compare them with those available for France. Results: Both Italy and Spain converged towards the European core (France) earlier in life expectancy than in GDP. We find it necessary to split the series into two sub-periods, and we find that, in general, both improvements in life expectancy cause GDP growth and economic growth causes improvements in life expectancy. For the countries and the periods considered there are, however, exceptions in both cases. Conclusions: Our findings confirm the hypothesis of a non-monotonic relationship between life expectancy and income, but they also emphasize the importance of empirical qualifications, imposed by the historical experience of each national case

I divari regionali in Italia sulla base degli indicatori sociali (1871-2001)

This work presents and discusses some of the most important social indicators (height, education, life expectancy and human development index), referring to the Italian regions for the period spanning from 1871 to 2001. According to the data, there was a catching-up process of Southern Italy toward the Centre North, which started by the end of the XIXth century and came to a halt only in the last decades of the XXth century. In order to explain this trend, it is argued that the most backward regions have “passively” benefited from the improvements in social fields, such as nutrition, education and longevity, which spread through almost the whole world during this period.

Settimo non rubare. Furto e mercato nella storia dell’Occidente, de Paolo Prodi [Reseña]

El reciente volumen de Paolo Prodi es el último de una trilogía articulada sobre el estudio del pacto político, y del poder con él2 ; sobre la historia de la administración de justicia3 ; y, con Settimo non rubare, sobre la historia del mercado desde la Baja Edad Media hasta hoy. Elemento común es el forum –la plaza de la urbe–, considerado como lugar en el que se cumple el juramento político y, por ende, donde se ejercita el poder; como ámbito en el que se administra la justicia y, finalmente, como espacio en el que “se determina el valor de las cosas”: como mercado, pues