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The Invention of Enterprise: Entrepreneurship from Ancient Mesopotamia to Modern Times

Author

Listed:
  • David S. Landes
  • Joel Mokyr
  • William J. Baumol

Abstract

Whether hailed as heroes or cast as threats to social order, entrepreneurs--and their innovations--have had an enormous influence on the growth and prosperity of nations. The Invention of Enterprise gathers together, for the first time, leading economic historians to explore the entrepreneur's role in society from antiquity to the present. Addressing social and institutional influences from a historical context, each chapter examines entrepreneurship during a particular period and in an important geographic location. The book chronicles the sweeping history of enterprise in Mesopotamia and Neo-Babylon; carries the reader through the Islamic Middle East; offers insights into the entrepreneurial history of China, Japan, and Colonial India; and describes the crucial role of the entrepreneur in innovative activity in Europe and the United States, from the medieval period to today. In considering the critical contributions of entrepreneurship, the authors discuss why entrepreneurial activities are not always productive and may even sabotage prosperity. They examine the institutions and restrictions that have enabled or impeded innovation, and the incentives for the adoption and dissemination of inventions. They also describe the wide variations in global entrepreneurial activity during different historical periods and the similarities in development, as well as entrepreneurship's role in economic growth. The book is filled with past examples and events that provide lessons for promoting and successfully pursuing contemporary entrepreneurship as a means of contributing to the welfare of society. The Invention of Enterprise lays out a definitive picture for all who seek an understanding of innovation's central place in our world.

Suggested Citation

  • David S. Landes & Joel Mokyr & William J. Baumol, 2012. "The Invention of Enterprise: Entrepreneurship from Ancient Mesopotamia to Modern Times," Economics Books, Princeton University Press, edition 1, number 9006.
    • Handle: RePEc:pup:pbooks:9006
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Maryam Khosravi & Mahmood Yahyazadehfar & Mohsen Alizadeh Sani, 2023. "Economic growth and human capital in Iran: A phenomenological study in a major Central Asian economy," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 40(2), pages 645-679, June.
    2. Sunny Li Sun & Weilei (Stone) Shi & David Ahlstrom & Li (Rachel) Tian, 2020. "Understanding institutions and entrepreneurship: The microfoundations lens and emerging economies," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 37(4), pages 957-979, December.
    3. Maria Rosaria Carillo & Vincenzo Lombardo & Alberto Zazzaro, 2015. "Family Firms and Entrepreneurial Human Capital in the Process of Development," CSEF Working Papers 400, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    4. van Bavel, Bas, 2016. "The Invisible Hand?: How Market Economies have Emerged and Declined Since AD 500," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199608133.
    5. David Ahlstrom & Amber Y. Chang & Jessie S. T. Cheung, 2019. "Encouraging Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-14, November.
    6. Mona Ahmadiani & Susana Ferreira & Craig E. Landry, 2019. "Flood Insurance and Risk Reduction: Market Penetration, Coverage, and Mitigation in Coastal North Carolina," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 85(4), pages 1058-1082, April.
    7. Casey J. Frid & David M. Wyman & Bentley Coffey, 2016. "Effects of wealth inequality on entrepreneurship," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 47(4), pages 895-920, December.
    8. Guzman, Jorge, 2020. "The Direct Effect of Corporate Law on Entrepreneurship," SocArXiv 967ph, Center for Open Science.
    9. Nelu Eugen POPESCU, 2013. "Entrepreneurship – Some General Knowledge," Expert Journal of Economics, Sprint Investify, vol. 1(1), pages 28-32, December.
    10. Chankseliani, Maia & James Relly, Susan, 2016. "Three-Capital Approach to the Study of Young People who Excel in Vocational Occupations: A Case of WorldSkills Competitors and Entrepreneurship," International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET), European Research Network in Vocational Education and Training (VETNET), European Educational Research Association, vol. 3(1), pages 46-65.
    11. Maria Rosaria Carillo & Vincenzo Lombardo & Alberto Zazzaro, 2013. "Family Firm Connections and Entrepreneurial Human Capital in the Process of Development," Mo.Fi.R. Working Papers 89, Money and Finance Research group (Mo.Fi.R.) - Univ. Politecnica Marche - Dept. Economic and Social Sciences.

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