Michalopoulos Stelios, Naghavi Alireza, Prarolo Giovanni
Brown University, Department of Economics, 64 Waterman Street, Providence, RI 02912, and NBER,
Department of Economics, University of Bologna, Piazza Scaravilli 2, Bologna 40126, Italy,
J Dev Econ. 2016 May;120:86-98. doi: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2016.01.002. Epub 2016 Jan 25.
This study explores the interaction between trade and geography in shaping the Islamic economic doctrine. We build a model where an unequal distribution of land quality in presence of trade opportunities conferred differential gains from trade across regions, fostering predatory behavior by groups residing in the poorly endowed territories. We show that in such an environment it was mutually beneficial to institute an economic system of income redistribution featuring income transfers in return for safe passage to conduct trade. A commitment problem, however, rendered a merely static redistribution scheme unsustainable. Islam developed a set of dynamic redistributive rules that were self-enforcing, in regions where arid lands dominated the landscape. While such principles fostered the expansion of trade within the Muslim world they limited the accumulation of wealth by the commercial elite, shaping the economic trajectory of Islamic lands in the pre-industrial era.
本研究探讨了贸易与地理在塑造伊斯兰经济教义过程中的相互作用。我们构建了一个模型，在存在贸易机会的情况下，土地质量的不平等分布使得各地区从贸易中获得的收益存在差异，从而促使生活在资源匮乏地区的群体产生掠夺行为。我们表明，在这样的环境中，建立一个以收入转移为特征的收入再分配经济体系是互利的，这种收入转移是为了换取安全的贸易通道。然而，一个承诺问题使得仅仅是静态的再分配方案无法持续。在干旱土地占主导的地区，伊斯兰教发展出了一套自我执行的动态再分配规则。虽然这些原则促进了穆斯林世界内部贸易的扩张，但它们限制了商业精英的财富积累，塑造了前工业时代伊斯兰土地的经济轨迹。
