The importance of religion for education: An economic-historical research agenda based on Prussian district data, Part 1

In the 19th century, Germany and in particular Prussia had a leading international position in the development of its educational system. Although this role is well documented, its causes as well as its importance for economic development have not been subject to much quantitative research. Recently, extensive data sets of Prussian districts and cities, covering nearly the entire 19th century, have become accessible to microeconomic research, making it possible to examine the importance of religion, education and additional factors for the economic development in Prussia in the 19th century using micro-regional data. This is a current project of Ifo's department of Human Capital and Innovation. This article discusses the research foundations and the preliminary results of the economic-historical project components that deal with the importance of religion in education. In a second part in a coming issue of ifo Schnelldienst, we examine the importance of education for economic development.