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Sweet equality: Sugar, property rights, and land distribution in colonial Java

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  • de Zwart, Pim
  • Soekhradj, Phylicia

Abstract

This article exploits a unique district-level dataset to investigate the relationship between sugar cultivation, property rights systems and land distribution in colonial Java around the turn of the twentieth century. We demonstrate a negative and statistically significant relationship between sugar cultivation and the landholder Gini. An IV strategy, employing a newly computed index of sugar suitability as instrument, suggests that this effect is causal. It is argued that sugar production in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries stimulated the expansion and persistence of communal landholding. This communal landholding consequently led to more equally distributed plots among landholders in the early twentieth century. We emphasize the importance of local property rights institutions in mitigating the effects of export production on socioeconomic outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • de Zwart, Pim & Soekhradj, Phylicia, 2023. "Sweet equality: Sugar, property rights, and land distribution in colonial Java," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:exehis:v:88:y:2023:i:c:s0014498323000074
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eeh.2023.101513
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    Cited by:

    1. Lin Zhou & Walter Timo de Vries & Alexandra Panman & Fei Gao & Chenyu Fang, 2023. "Evaluating Collective Action for Effective Land Policy Reform in Developing Country Contexts: The Construction and Validation of Dimensions and Indicators," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-21, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Colonialism; Institutions; Inequality; Cash crops; Indonesia;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N35 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Asia including Middle East
    • N55 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - Asia including Middle East
    • P48 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Legal Institutions; Property Rights; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Regional Studies
    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment
    • Q17 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agriculture in International Trade

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