Trousson, Raymond / Vercruysse, Jeroom (dir.), Dictionnaire general de Voltaire. (Champion classiques, references et dictionnaires 18) 1272 p. 2020:10 (Champion, FR) <670-9>
ISBN 978-2-38096-016-7 paper ¥7,064.- (税込) EUR 38.00

中世イングランドに食料を供給する－700～1300年の長い「農業革命」
Hamerow, Helena / McKerracher, Mark / Bogaard, Amy et al., Feeding Medieval England: A Long 'Agricultural Revolution', 700-1300. 352 pp. 2025:11 (Oxford U. Pr., UK) <749-314>
ISBN 978-0-19-887852-0 hard ¥27,987.- (税込) GB￡ 99.00

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license. It is free to read at on Oxford Academic and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. The population of England grew steeply in the Middle Ages, especially between the tenth and thirteenth centuries. This volume investigates how medieval farmers managed to produce the large harvests needed to sustain this growth, growth that in turn fuelled a major expansion of towns and markets. New evidence is presented for the development of the medieval farming regimes that shaped the English landscape in ways still visible today. Medieval farming is a contentious topic, not least because of the different approaches taken by historians, archaeologists and geographers and no consensus has been reached about the cultivation regimes that underpinned medieval cereal production. This volume presents a new perspective on this question, based on the results of a project that analysed the remains of medieval crops, arable weeds, livestock and pollen from hundreds of excavations. The new evidence that this generated reveals the conditions in which medieval crops were grown and how land use changed between the late Roman period and the Black Death. The authors relate the results to archaeological and written evidence for farms and farming, bringing an ecological perspective to the debate about the so-called medieval 'agricultural revolution'. The 'cerealisation' of England emerges as a regionally varied process lasting several centuries, whose overall impact was nevertheless revolutionary.

Harvey, Eric J., Reading Creation Myths Economically in Ancient Mesopotamia and Israel. (Elements in Ancient and Pre-modern Economies) 75 pp. 2025:8 (Cambridge U. Pr., UK) <749-315>
ISBN 978-1-009-55988-1 hard ¥15,548.- (税込) GB￡ 55.00
ISBN 978-1-009-55991-1 paper ¥5,088.- (税込) GB￡ 18.00

Creation myths in the ancient Middle East served, among other things, as works of political economy, justifying and naturalizing materially intensive ritual practices and their entanglements with broader economic processes and institutions. These rituals were organized according to a common ideology of divine service, which portrayed the gods as an aristocratic leisure class whose material needs were provided by human beings. Resources for divine service were extracted from the productive sectors of society and channeled inward to the temple and palace institutions, where they served to satiate the gods and support their human servants. This Element examines various forms of the economics of divine service, and how they were supported in a selection of myths - Atra?asis, Enki and Ninma?, and Enuma Elis from Mesopotamia and the story of the Garden of Eden from the southern Levant (Israel).

Kypta, Ulla, Kooperative Individualisten: Gesellschafter, Diener und Bevollmaechtigte deutscher Kaufleute im Antwerpen des spaeten 15. und 16. Jahrhunderts. (Vierteljahrschrift fuer Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte, Beihefte 262) 400 S. 2025:6 (F. Steiner, GW) <749-318>
ISBN 978-3-515-13647-1 hard ¥17,419.- (税込) EUR 74.00

近世のグローバルなコンテクストにおけるシュレージエンの経済
Steffen, Anka, Am leinenen Faden: Schlesiens Wirtschaft im globalen Kontext der fruehen Neuzeit. (Beitraege zur Globalgeschichte 5) 493 S. 2025:6 (F. Steiner, GW) <749-320>
ISBN 978-3-515-13909-0 hard ¥22,127.- (税込) EUR 94.00

Die schlesische Leinwandherstellung war in der fruehen Neuzeit eng mit dem transatlantischen Sklavenhandel und der Plantagensklaverei verbunden. Leinwand aus Schlesien wurde an der Kueste Westafrikas gegen Versklavte eingetauscht. In den amerikanischen Kolonien diente sie sowohl zur Bekleidung der dorthin Verschleppten als auch der europaeischen Einwanderer. Die Leinwandkaufleute aus den schlesischen Gebirgshandelsstaedten Hirschberg, Greiffenberg, Landeshut, Schmiedeberg und Waldenburg drueckten die Verkaufspreise fuer die Gewebe auf ein wettbewerbsfaehiges Niveau, indem sie als Gutsherren untertaenige Spinner und Weber ausbeuteten. Anka Steffen zeigt, wie sich die Riesengebirgsregion Schlesiens seit dem 16. Jahrhundert als Gewerberaum im Kontext globaler Waren- und Menschenstroeme entwickelte. Sie veranschaulicht die Verflechtung zwischen schlesischer Leibeigenschaft und Plantagensklaverei sowie deren strukturelle Auswirkung auf die Region bis ins 20. Jahrhundert, jenseits ideologischer West-Ost-Gegensaetze. Der Band wurde ausgezeichnet mit dem Martin Behaim-Preis (Gesellschaft fuer Globalgeschichte), dem Karin-Biermann-Preis (Stiftung Kulturwerk Schlesien) und dem Georg R. Schroubek Dissertationspreis (Sonderfonds Oestliches Europa).

Xie, Fuzhan / Cai, Fang (eds.), Chronicling China's Reform and Opening-Up. (China Insights) 365 pp. 2025:7 (Springer, GW) <749-191>
ISBN 978-981-9618-80-4 hard ¥47,076.- (税込) EUR 199.99

This book aims to describe and explain the whole process of China's reform and opening-up based on a long-term and global view, trying to reveal the path and philosophy inside. This book is divided into five parts, with 18 chapters, including key topics around economic growth, public policy, social issues and national strategy such as urbanization, migrant works, state-owned enterprise, land reform, political system reform, BRI, which presents an overview of China's economic history since Reform and Opening-up.

インドにおける成長、開発、生産性の75年
Maiti, Dibyendu / Goldar, B. / Krishna, K. L. (eds.), 75 Years of Growth, Development and Productivity in India: Issues, Measures, Causes, and Impacts. (India Studies in Business and Economics) 810 pp. 2025:8 (Springer, GW) <749-192>
ISBN 978-981-9780-53-2 hard ¥40,014.- (税込) EUR 169.99

This edited volume documents through its 75 years post-independence, the developmental complexities, economic achievements and challenges unique to India, given its vast population and regional, cultural, and climatic diversities, with simple illustrations, making them accessible to readers with varying levels of expertise. Since gaining independence, the Indian economy has embarked on a distinctive journey, navigating through a series of economic policy experiments in diverse economic landscapes. This distinct trajectory has not only accelerated its pace of economic growth but also addressed a myriad of developmental issues, from poverty to well-being, with varied degrees of success over the years. The detailed analysis and anecdotal evidence are at the core to show how the country's experience and challenges are different from the linear model of development transition, and must be understood in their own context. The academic papers, both theoretical and empirical, highlight the pace and patterns of sectoral dynamics since independence, unfold the issues and factors affecting development, with a particular focus on the productivity growth of the Indian economy, and showcase debates that may help planning policy for Vision@2047, the year when India would celebrate its centenary year of independence. The book contains 24 chapters divided into ten sections, covering issues related to growth strategies, productivity growth, agricultural transition, growth heterogeneity, labour, rural non-farm sector and migration, social sectors including education and environment, and debates on industrialisation and servicification - the principle features of Indian growth and development story. Given such diverse collection of chapters and discussions in them, the book will find readers across the developmental economics sphere ranging from academics to policy makers as well as industry experts.

韓国の経済成長　1876～2022年
Kim, Nak Nyeon, Korean Economic Growth, 1876 - 2022: Openness, Institutional Change, and Learning. (Studies in Economic History) 347 pp. 2025:6 (Springer, GW) <749-199>
ISBN 978-981-9648-31-3 hard ¥30,598.- (税込) EUR 129.99 *

This book provides the first comprehensive explanation of Korea's 150 years of economic growth, from the opening of the ports to the present, based on consistently organized long-term statistics. The book also compares Korea's experience with that of other countries. During this period, Korea experienced major systemic transitions, from a traditional society to colonial rule, and after liberation, the division between North and South Korea. East Asian latecomer nations, including Korea, rapidly closed the gap with advanced countries through learning and adaptation following their opening to the world. The book uses Korea's case to demonstrate how institutional changes influence economic performance and explain the conditions under which rapid catch-up growth can occur or fail to occur. Korea's high growth was achieved under an authoritarian regime with state-led industrial policies. As the limitations of this model became evident, Korea transitioned to a private-sector-led approach, facing economic crises in the process. Economic growth led to the rise of a highly educated middle class. This, in turn, surfaced demands that had been suppressed under the authoritarian regime, paving the way for democratization. Social development and fairness, long overshadowed by economic growth, became key policy agendas. Following the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Korea has faced the dual challenges of slow growth and rising inequality, driving increased calls for income redistribution and the establishment of a Korean-style welfare state. The book is divided into two parts. Part 1 explores long-term trends in Korea's economic growth, comparing them with other countries. Part 2 provides a detailed, stage-by-stage analysis, highlighting the specific institutional and policy changes that shaped Korea's development.

現代の石油の取引の社会・経済史
Imsirovic, Adi / Bryce, Colin, The Rivers of Money: Social and Economic History of Modern Oil Trading. 240 pp. 2025:7 (Palgrave Macmillan, UK) <749-241>
ISBN 978-3-031-91805-6 paper ¥11,766.- (税込) EUR 49.99

Modern oil trading, as we know it today, has its roots in the 1970s, especially after the collapse of the vertically integrated structure of the oil industry, controlled by oil majors. Oil trading flourished in the 1980s, following the energy liberalisation policies in the UK and US. In the process, the largest trading companies such as Vitol, Trafigura, Marcuria and others have taken on new roles in the industry, including financing of major new projects. The authors Adi Imsirovic and Colin Bryce have participated in oil trading during its pivotal years and through knowledge of the industry, experience and contacts hope to bring to life this period in rich details with key industry interviews. A serious academic study of the social history of modern trading but written in a way that makes it accessible to a wider audience, this book will be of interest to anyone involved in finance, economics, energy, policy, and trading.

Wang, Q. Edward, Staple to Superfood: A Global History of the Sweet Potato. (Columbia Studies in International and Global History) 496 pp. 2025:11 (Columbia U. Pr., US) <749-258>
ISBN 978-0-231-21735-4 hard ¥31,185.- (税込) US$ 150.00
ISBN 978-0-231-21736-1 paper ¥7,900.- (税込) US$ 38.00

Sweet potatoes were among the American crops Christopher Columbus brought back to Europe-where they were thought to be an aphrodisiac. In China, this versatile root became a staple that fueled rapid population growth. Introduced to Japan to stave off famine, sweet potatoes later sustained the country's imperial expansion. Because this hardy plant can thrive in almost any soil, it has long been cultivated as a subsistence crop in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Oceania. In recent years, Western health experts have begun touting the humble sweet potato as a "superfood" with numerous nutritional benefits.Considering these events and many others, Staple to Superfood explores the sweet potato's rich history and remarkable global influence. Q. Edward Wang demonstrates how this resilient root has not only nourished communities but also defined their identities. Tracing its journeys through the intricate networks of global trade and cultural exchange, he shows how the sweet potato transformed agricultural practices, culinary traditions, and social structures worldwide. From the Americas to Europe to Asia and the Pacific, the spread of this crop illuminates the varied paths that global development has taken. Wang also contrasts the sweet potato with its botanically unrelated namesake, the white potato. Blending agricultural, cultural, and historical perspectives, Staple to Superfood offers a fresh look at the power of food to transform societies. It is a compelling exploration of how the sweet potato shaped the modern world and continues to influence global food systems today.