Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Economy, political
(6,222 words)

1. Definition

1.1. Meaning

The term political economy has three overlapping meanings:

1) As used in Old Europe, the term originally meant the internal economic and social constitution of a systematic order structured and guaranteed by authority;  as yet no distinction was made or even possible between the particular analytic and normative meanings (Oeconomica of Old Europe).

2) Subsequently (and in part contrary to this older meaning [45]) the term cam…

Cite this page
Plumpe, Werner and Köster, Roman, “Economy, political”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_024971>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20170626



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