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The Role of Immigrants, Emigrants, and Locals in the Historical Formation of Knowledge Agglomerations

Author

Listed:
  • Viktor Stojkoski
  • Philipp Koch
  • Cesar A. Hidalgo

Abstract

Did migrants help make Paris a center for the arts and Vienna a beacon of classical music? Or was the rise of these knowledge agglomerations a sole consequence of local actors? Here, we use data on the biographies of more than 22,000 famous historical individuals born between the years 1000 and 2000 to estimate the contribution of famous immigrants, emigrants, and locals to the knowledge specializations of European regions. We find that the probability that a region develops a specialization in a new activity (physics, philosophy, painting, music, etc.) grows with the presence of immigrants with knowledge on that activity and of immigrants specialized in related activities. We also find that the probability that a region loses one of its existing areas of specialization decreases with the presence of immigrants specialized in that activity and in related activities. In contrast, we do not find robust evidence that locals with related knowledge play a statistically significant role in a region entering or exiting a new specialization. These findings advance our understanding of the role of migration in the historical formation of knowledge agglomerations. nations.

Suggested Citation

  • Viktor Stojkoski & Philipp Koch & Cesar A. Hidalgo, 2022. "The Role of Immigrants, Emigrants, and Locals in the Historical Formation of Knowledge Agglomerations," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 2231, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Nov 2022.
    • Handle: RePEc:egu:wpaper:2231
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    File URL: http://econ.geo.uu.nl/peeg/peeg2231.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Frank Neffke & Matté Hartog & Ron Boschma & Martin Henning, 2018. "Agents of Structural Change: The Role of Firms and Entrepreneurs in Regional Diversification," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 94(1), pages 23-48, January.
    2. Ernest Miguelez & Andrea Morrison, 2023. "Migrant inventors as agents of technological change," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(2), pages 669-692, April.
    3. Michel Serafinelli & Guido Tabellini, 2022. "Creativity over time and space," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 27(1), pages 1-43, March.
    4. Zoltán Elekes & Ron Boschma & Balázs Lengyel, 2019. "Foreign-owned firms as agents of structural change in regions," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(11), pages 1603-1613, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Luo, Jiahui & Dong, Jingrong & Tan, Zhixiong & Zhang, Haitao & Zhang, Wenqing, 2024. "Relatedness, digital economy and renewable energy product evolution—based on product space perspective," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    migration; knowledge spillovers; relatedness; economic history;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N13 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • N93 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - Europe: Pre-1913
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

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