Course 2025-2026 a.y.

• The Stone Age economy (and beyond).
• The medieval legacy (1347-1530).
• The rise of the West and the “Great Divergence”.
• From the Mediterranean to the North Sea (1530-1720).
• New Institutions & New protagonist
• The First Industrial Revolution
• The Second Industrial Revolution
• The Second Industrial Revolution: Italy and the United States

• The Dark Side of the Industrial Revolution

• The Origins of Industrialization in Asia: Japan

• The Origins (and delays) of Industrialization in Asia: China and Japan

• Topics in Economic History I: Pandemics

• Globalisation’s peak

• Topics in Economic History II: Slavery

• The age of mass migration

• War & Disintegration of the global economic order (1914-1950)

• The Great Depression of the 1930s

• Global economic recovery after World War II

• Decolonisation: lights and (many) shadows

• Winners and losers in the second half of the 20th century

• The end of the golden age of capitalism?

• Globalisation and inequality: a long-term perspective

• The new global economy of the early 21st century

• The new global economy of the early 21st century: the Dragon awakens

• Describe the general economic development of Europe and selected world areas in the long run of history.
• Explain the specificities in the path of development followed by each country/world area.
• Identify the basic historical variables relevant for research across the social sciences.

• Analyze how the specific historical developments of a given country/world area affect the inner workings of its current economy and society.
• Draw up a summary of the long-term economic development of a specific country/world area.

• Individual works / Assignments

Students who decide to submit the optional "Descriptive Report"  also are required to be ready to present it in class. Given the nature of such reports, the presentations are an occasion for covering the historical developments of additional countries/world areas.

Assessment is based on one mandatory element, plus one optional one:

1. A partial written exam on the first part of the course and another partial written exam on the second part of the course. Each partial exam counts for 50% of the final mark. OR a written exam on the full program (100% of the final mark). The partial and general exams consist of one essay question, aimed at assessing the capacity of the students to provide a well-articulated discussion of one topic, and multiple short questions, whose objective is to check the ability of the students to concisely explain the relevant historical facts. In addition, the exams will also include two questions related with the chronological order of historical events and one true/false question, whose answer the students have to motivate with one sentence.
2. (Optional): a short “descriptive report” (max 2,000 words, plus references) about:
   • The economic history of a specific world area / country during the preindustrial period OR
   •  The path towards industrialization of a specific country.
   • Good-quality reports add 0.5 points (out of 30) to the final mark, excellent reports add 1 point, and poor reports not alter the final mark.

Non-attending students have to cover the same program as for attending students and are admitted to the partial exams or the general exam. However, non-attending students are not allowed to submit the optional descriptive report.

• G. Alfani and A. Colli, 2025, Among the Waves of Globalization. An Economic History of the World, Giappichelli.