Diaspora Entrepreneurial Networks: Four Centuries of History

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Diasporas - large-scale ethnic migrations - have been a source of growing concern as we try to understand the nature of community, identity and nationalism. Traditionally, diaspora communities have been understood to be pariah communities, and most work on diasporas has focused on specific groups such as the Jewish or African Diaspora. This book is unique in arguing against traditional intrepretations and in taking a comparative look at a range of diasporas, including the Jewish, Arab, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Maltese, Greek and Armenian diasporas. Taking the past four centuries into consideration, the authors examine diaspora trading networks across the globe on both a regional and international level. They investigate the common patterns and practices in the enterprises of diaspora peoples and entrepreneurs. The regions covered include Western Europe, the Mediterranean, South West Asia and the Indian Ocean, and South East Asia. Diaspora trading groups connected through global networks were crucial to international trade well before the twentieth century, yet because they were not part of established institutions they have remained elusive to economists, sociologists and historians. Through an understanding of diaspora trading networks, we learn not only about diaspora communities but also about the roots of the modern global economy.

Reviews

'Students of economic development have reason to be grateful for this new book on diasporas-not only the performance of traditional minority groups such as Jews and Calvinists, but a wide historical range of expatriate groups who leave home and make the most of economic opportunity in other lands. This is a major theme, of particular importance to those who want to understand why some countries have done so much better than others in global competition. A must read.' David Landes, Professor of History and Economics Emeritus, Harvard University 'Diaspora communities are important drivers of today's global economy. This highly original collection of essays reveals the rich history of this phenonomen. The book opens up a new dimension of the business history of globalization with fascinating studies of the roles of Armenian, Greek, Jewish, Chinese and other entrepreneurial networks.' Geoffrey Jones, Joseph C. Wilson Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School 'The book comes as a significant contribution to a number of studies that aim to analyze commercial networks in this comparative framework. The book consists of a plethora of case studies that the editors Baghdiantz McCabe, Harlaftis and Pepelasis Minoglou have skillfully selected. The book is an extremely interesting collection of essays that is bound to inform but also inspire new research in the history of diaspora trading networks.' EH.Net online

Author Bio

Ina Baghdiantz McCabe is Darakjian Jafarian Chair of Armenian History,Tufts University. Gelina Harlaftis is Associate Professor, Department of History, Ionian University, Corfu. Ioanna Pepelasis Minoglou is Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Athens University of Economics.