Seminar organisers: Zoey Shen, Tom Learmouth, Bumjin Park
Venue:
Autumn Term: CKK.2.18 (Cheng Kin Ku Building) unless otherwise stated
Winter Term: CKK 1.17, unless otherwise stated
Spring Term: PAR.2.03, unless otherwise stated
Time: 12-1pm, unless otherwise stated
Spring Term 2024 - 2025
10 June
Li Yanran (Peking University/University of Warwick)
Modern Institution and Industrial Development: The Role of Labour Mobility
Abstract: This paper examines how labor mobility mediated the impact of modern institutions on industrial development in late Qing and early Republican China. Focusing on the Chinese Maritime Customs Service—a modern bureaucracy characterized by concentrated talent and standardized practices—it investigates whether the resignation of Chinese staff contributed to the rise of modern firms. Panel data analysis reveals a robust positive correlation between staff resignations and new firm formation across regions and over time. To address endogeneity, the study leverages the 1901 reform that centralized native customs. Case studies further illustrate how former staff transferred knowledge and practices, facilitating institutional diffusion. The findings highlight the pivotal role of individuals in linking state institutions to industrial growth in early modern China.
28 January
Ying Dai (Cambridge)
Working Patterns in the twentieth century Yangtze Valley: Evidence from Lineage Genealogies
Abstract: The history of labour is essential for understanding China’s transformation from an agricultural economy to the workshop of the world during the twentieth century. However, reliable occupational data from censuses are only available from 1982 onwards. My research identifies lineage genealogies (jiapu), compiled after the Reform and Opening-up period, as a new, reliable, and representative source for studying the working patterns of twentieth-century China from various perspectives. The Yangtze Jiapu Dataset (YJD), comprising 210,383 occupational observations from 211 jiapu, suggests a delayed structural change and significant regional differences across the Lower Yangtze, Middle Yangtze, and Upper Yangtze regions. A subset of the YJD, consisting of 92 jiapu that comprehensively record by-employment, suggests a double-peak pattern of by-employment in the Yangtze Valley over the long twentieth century. This reflects China’s unique historical trajectory and highlights specialization, structural change, and land systems as key shaping factors. I will also present preliminary data on lifetime occupational changes, intergenerational occupational mobilty, and the occupations of husbands and wives, for which I look forward to receiving further feedback.
11 February
Anne Booth (SOAS)
The Causes and Consequences of Globalisation in Southeast Asia from the 16th century to the Present
Abstract: This seminar will examine the impact of globalization in the countries of Southeast Asia, (Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore and Brunei) which form a very mixed group in terms of population size, per capita GDP, and levels of human development. These differences are partly the result of colonial legacies, and partly the result of political and economic policies pursued since 1960. Building on Reid’s study of the "Age of Commerce", he pointed out that in 1600, Southeast Asia looked similar to Europe in terms of urbanization, and living standards. In recent decades, a considerable literature has emerged which tries to explain the reasons for the economic and political diversity which is obvious today. Some economists have explained the difference in terms of economic policies including trade and investment policies; the argument is that the more open economies have done much better than those which have adopted protectionist policies and discouraged foreign investment. The talk will try to tease out the implications of the different economic policies for economic growth across the region, both in the colonial era and more recently. By 2020, only two countries, Singapore and Brunei had reached high income status; in spite of sustained economic growth the others are still at best in the upper middle-income category as defined by the World Bank. Can they sustain growth to the point where they will become rich and stable economies by 2050?
11 March
Jan Lucassen (International Institute of Social History)
Earning an Income in India, 1500-1900
Abstract: In comparative world history, India is one of the main civilizations (or, if you prefer, societies) to be studied. Unfortunately, in comparison to (Western) Europe, China, or Japan, it often is left out, allegedly because of a lack of source material, or because of its otherness (think of the caste system). This is a pity and totally unnecessary as will be demonstrated by a number of new developments in the history of work. To start with, new data have become available abundantly which enable us to reconstruct long-term wage trends from 1500 to 1900. Next, a discussion will follow about the relation between (adult male) wages and household income. Furthermore, the question arises how important wages were for the "common" Indian. Here an indirect method has to be applied, i.e. the study of deep monetization as a guide fossil for the extension of wage labour. Finally, new research possibilities regarding the material and immaterial parts of welfare will be introduced briefly.
Tuesday 7 October
Toan Luu Duc Huynh (Queen Mary)
A Land of Sages: A Legacy of Former Elites and University Professors in Vietnam
Venue: Vera Anstey Room
26 November
Nina Liu (KCL)
Printing and Women: The Gendered Impact of Printing Technology in Imperial China
3 December
Kota Ogasawara (Tokyo Institute of Technology)
Technology, Institutions, and Regional Growth: Evidence from the Mineral Mining Industry in Industrialising Japan
