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Catholicism in early 20th century China: A re-examination

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  • Ma, Ningning
  • Zhao, Yiling

Abstract

The impact of Catholic missions on modern China’s development remains understudied, unlike that of their Protestant counterparts. This gap in research stems from not only the influence of Weber’s Protestant-ethic thesis but also practical research barriers, as Catholic mission locations are often recorded at sub-county levels or using non-standardized Romanization. This paper introduces two methods to improve geocoding in such cases: cross-referencing local gazetteers and developing a phonetic cross-walk to standardized Romanization. While using publicly available GIS data locate only 47.4% of church sites, our method can be used to identify an additional 39.6% of these sites. This enhanced precision enables a re-interpretation of Catholic missions’ impact in modern China, particularly in comparison with Protestant missions.

Suggested Citation

  • Ma, Ningning & Zhao, Yiling, 2025. "Catholicism in early 20th century China: A re-examination," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 98(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:exehis:v:98:y:2025:i:c:s001449832500066x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eeh.2025.101719
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    References listed on IDEAS

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