Book contents
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors to Volume I
- Preface and Acknowledgements
- Introduction to Volume I
- Part I Regional Developments
- 1 Britain, the Industrial Revolution, and Modern Economic Growth
- 2 Continental Europe
- 3 Tokugawa Japan and the Foundations of Modern Economic Growth in Asia
- 4 China: The Start of the Great Divergence
- 5 From the Mughals to the Raj: India 1700–1858
- 6 Sustainable Development in South East Asia
- 7 The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1870
- 8 The Economic History of North America, 1700–1870
- 9 Latin America: 1700–1870
- 10 Africa: Slavery and the World Economy, 1700–1870
- 11 Australia: Geography and Institutions
- Part II Factors Governing Differential Outcomes in the Global Economy
- Index
- References
6 - Sustainable Development in South East Asia
from Part I - Regional Developments
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 June 2021
Book contents
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors to Volume I
- Preface and Acknowledgements
- Introduction to Volume I
- Part I Regional Developments
- 1 Britain, the Industrial Revolution, and Modern Economic Growth
- 2 Continental Europe
- 3 Tokugawa Japan and the Foundations of Modern Economic Growth in Asia
- 4 China: The Start of the Great Divergence
- 5 From the Mughals to the Raj: India 1700–1858
- 6 Sustainable Development in South East Asia
- 7 The Ottoman Empire, 1700–1870
- 8 The Economic History of North America, 1700–1870
- 9 Latin America: 1700–1870
- 10 Africa: Slavery and the World Economy, 1700–1870
- 11 Australia: Geography and Institutions
- Part II Factors Governing Differential Outcomes in the Global Economy
- Index
- References
Summary
Early modern South East Asia can be characterized as a region of low population density, abundant natural resources, and high labour productivity in agriculture, where coastal areas were deeply involved in international trade, in particular with China and India. Available information on urban real wages indicates that in most parts of the region, living standards were well above Chinese and Indian levels until at least the mid-nineteenth century. The population growth observed throughout the region in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries suggests also a strong resilience to climate shocks and wars. The main independent indigenous polities in the mainland and a few smaller ones in the archipelago reinforced their authority, legitimacy, and capacity. An increase or stability in the long run of per capita terms comprehensive wealth, which is the total value of natural, human, and physical (i.e. produced) capital stocks divided by total population, would imply a sustainable economic transformation. The general trends that can be observed suggest that this was the case in early modern South East Asia.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World , pp. 146 - 168Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
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