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Persistence of Cities: Evidence from China

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Using data from Qing dynasty, this paper investigates long-run implications of the early development for the present development in China. We use city-level population density in 1776 as a measure of the early economic prosperity, and investigate how it is associated with today�s development indicators such as the average night-light density, GDP per capita, average years of schooling, and trade openness. We find that more prosperous cities of the Qing dynasty are now brighter, richer, more educated, and more open.

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  • Fan Duan & Bulent Unel, 2017. "Persistence of Cities: Evidence from China," Departmental Working Papers 2017-08, Department of Economics, Louisiana State University.
    • Handle: RePEc:lsu:lsuwpp:2017-08
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    File URL: https://www.lsu.edu/business/economics/files/workingpapers/pap17_08.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Roman Matousek & Chunchao Wang, 2021. "The economic challenges and opportunities of urbanization and migration in China," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 3-5, February.

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