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Regional Variation of GDP per head within China, 1080-1850 : implications for the great divergence debate

Author

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  • Broadberry, Stephen

    (Nuffield College, Oxford,)

  • Guan, Hanhui

    (Peking University)

Abstract

We examine regional variation in Chinese GDP per head for five benchmark years from the Song dynasty to the Qing. For the Ming and Qing dynasties, we provide a breakdown of regional GDP per head across seven macro regions, establishing that East Central China was the richest macro region. In addition, we provide data on the Yangzi Delta, the core of East Central China, widely seen as the richest part of China since 1400. Yangzi Delta GDP per head was 64 to 67 per cent higher than in China as a whole for three of the four Ming and Qing benchmarks, and 52 per cent higher during the late Ming. For the Northern Song dynasty, although it is not possible to derive a full regional breakdown, we provide data for Kaifeng Fu, the region containing the capital city. GDP per head in Kaifeng Fu was more than twice the level of China as a whole. Combined with aggregate data for GDP per head, these estimates suggest that China was the leading economy in the world during the Song dynasty and that the Great Divergence began around 1700 as the leading region of China fell decisively behind the leading region of Europe. JEL classification: N13 ; N33 ; O10 ; O47 Key words: Great Divergence ; China ; regional variation ; GDP per head

Suggested Citation

  • Broadberry, Stephen & Guan, Hanhui, 2022. "Regional Variation of GDP per head within China, 1080-1850 : implications for the great divergence debate," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 625, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    • Handle: RePEc:cge:wacage:625
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Li, Bozhong & van Zanden, Jan Luiten, 2012. "Before the Great Divergence? Comparing the Yangzi Delta and the Netherlands at the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 72(4), pages 956-989, December.
    2. Ye Ma & Herman de Jong, 2019. "Unfolding the Turbulent Century: A Reconstruction of China's Historical National Accounts, 1840–1912," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 65(1), pages 75-98, March.
    3. Goldstone, Jack A., 2021. "Dating the Great Divergence," Journal of Global History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(2), pages 266-285, July.
    4. Lennart Schon & Olle Krantz, 2012. "The Swedish economy in the early modern period: constructing historical national accounts," European Review of Economic History, European Historical Economics Society, vol. 16(4), pages 529-549, November.
    5. Hartwell, Robert, 1966. "Markets, Technology, and the Structure of Enterprise in the Development of the Eleventh-Century Chinese Iron and Steel Industry," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 26(1), pages 29-58, March.
    6. Malanima, Paolo, 2011. "The long decline of a leading economy: GDP in central and northern Italy, 1300–1913," European Review of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(2), pages 169-219, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Chilosi, David & Ciccarelli, Carlo, 2023. "Italy in the great divergence: what can we learn from Engel’s law?," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 667, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    2. David Chilosi & Carlo Ciccarelli, 2023. "Italy in the Great Divergence: What Can We Learn from Engel’s Law?," CEIS Research Paper 562, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 18 Jul 2023.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    great divergence ; china ; regional variation ; gdp per head;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N13 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • N33 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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