Capitalism was said to have started after the plague in Europe. Because of the death of many serfs, for the first time, because of a lack of labour, they could negotiate better pay and conditions.
Just posted a link to a podcast here http://forums.silverstackers.com/topic-70086-a-history-of-the-world-in-100-objects-podcast.html Whilst economics isn't its raison d'etre - it does talk about the history of coinage and payment. Non monetary specific, I'd say economics (the production, consumption, and transfer of wealth) is woven in to most elements of human history.
In short Economics is a term used to describe the process (or activity) of engaging with other people in order to acquire the things you need to live or want that you don't provide for yourself, and how you redistribute any surplus of what you do supply for yourself. This is true of individuals, families, communities, states and countries throughout the globe.
A long time ago. The best reference that I use is, " Trade and Politics in Ancient Greece" in English translation, by Johannes Hasebroek.
when man makes their First Trades long before you are born. When Bull Cart wheels are Square. :lol: :lol: :lol:
Almost every answer on this thread confuses trading and business from economics. Traders and businessmen are too busy trying to haggle a discount from their supplier, or trying to whip an extra half-mile per day out of their camel train. Economists contemplate on abstract topics such as price elasticity and hypothetical/inane ideas like 'gift economy'. Traders are individual creatures within an ecosystem looking out for their own financial interests. Economics is the study of the entire ecosystem as an whole without (necessarily) a profit motive. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_economic_thought would be a good starting point. If you're talking about economic science as an academic field of study in the English-speaking world, Adam Smith. [quote='Economics' from Wikipedia]The publication of Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations in 1776, has been described as "the effective birth of economics as a separate discipline." The book identified land, labor, and capital as the three factors of production and the major contributors to a nation's wealth...[/quote]
That is incorrect. Profit drives economic activity, whether it is material or spiritual gain. Furthermore, the entire system as a whole is comprised of individuals, so economics activity is how individuals satisfy need.
