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Qanats

Author

Listed:
  • Alireza Naghavi

    (University of Bologna)

  • Mohsen Shaeyan

    (Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz)

Abstract

Qanats – traditional Persian irrigation systems first built around 1000 B.C. – required a complex of cooperative local institutions for their construction and maintenance. We show that these institutions produced a (local) culture of cooperation in Iran that persists to the present day when qanats are no longer of economic value. We use unique geo-coded data on qanat coordinates in Iran together with information collected and digitized on cooperative enterprises and find a positive relationship between qanat locations and cooperative activities today. We build an IV using grid-level geological preconditions necessary for the construction and functioning of qanats: gently sloped terrains and intermediate clay content. The cooperation culture persists particularly close to historical trade routes and in areas with stable climatic conditions. The results hold for alternative proxies of social capital, namely the degree to which people trust their neighbours and the pervasiveness of charity-based Islamic microfinance establishments.

Suggested Citation

  • Alireza Naghavi & Mohsen Shaeyan, 2023. "Qanats," Working Papers 2307, Gutenberg School of Management and Economics, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz.
    • Handle: RePEc:jgu:wpaper:2307
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    File URL: https://download.uni-mainz.de/RePEc/pdf/Discussion_Paper_2307.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Irrigation; Cooperation; Qanat; Cooperatives; Social capital; Trade routes; Culture; Persistence;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N55 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - Asia including Middle East
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East
    • Q13 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Markets and Marketing; Cooperatives; Agribusiness
    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment
    • Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General
    • D70 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - General

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