Nuno Palma

@nunopgpalma.bsky.social

900 followers 120 following 20 posts

Professor, University of Manchester. Fellow ICS-UL. Director of the Arthur Lewis Lab for Comparative Development. Economic History, Growth & Development, Macroeconomics, Political Economy. Webpage: https://sites.google.com/site/npgpalma/home .. more

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Economics 82%

Political science 7%

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Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

How did local legal institutions power the British Industrial Revolution?

In a new working paper (with Tim Besley, Dan Bogart, and Jonathan Chapman @jnchapman-econ.bsky.social, we show that Justices of the Peace — magistrates acting locally — were a quiet engine behind modern economic growth. 🧵👇1/7

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Dr Victoria Bateman @vnbateman.bsky.social · 11d

It will be a huge honour to deliver the 2026 #HajnalLecture at the University of Manchester. It will also be something of a homecoming: Manchester was not only the place I grew up, it shaped my love of Economic History. #Manchester #EconHist @manchester.ac.uk #ArthurLewisLab @nunopgpalma.bsky.social

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Guido Alfani @guidoalfani.bsky.social · 21d

There is still time to apply for the 2026 Datini-Ester seminar on "Craft Guilds & Unions"! All PhD students working on these topics are welcome to apply! Join us in beautiful Prato (Tuscany) for this funded experience! (deadline November 15)
www.istitutodatini.it/ester/htm/ca...

Reposted by Nuno Palma

LSE Department of Economic History @lseechist.bsky.social · 28d

And shoutout to former LSE Economic History staff and PhD students Stephen Broadberry,
@cliochris.bsky.social and @nunopgpalma.bsky.social who have been cited as well. The scientific statement can be found here: www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2025...

www.nobelprize.org

Reposted by Nuno Palma, Alexandra Cirone

zombie westland @tomwestland.bsky.social · Oct 8

CALL FOR PAPERS
A workshop at LSE next April on 'Uses and Abuses of the Murdock Atlas in Social Science Research'. We're looking for cross-disciplinary engagement to think critically about what this widely used source means, what it can & can't tell us. Submit by Nov 14
www.lse.ac.uk/economic-his...

Uses and abuses of the Murdock Atlas in social science research

www.lse.ac.uk

Reposted by Nuno Palma, Noel D. Johnson

Patrick Fitzsimmons @patrubenfitz.bsky.social · Oct 6

Was thrilled to write this for @broadstreetblog.bsky.social (which I recommend for anyone interested in historical political economy)

www.broadstreet.blog/p/blood-and-...

Blood and Iron: Political Fragmentation in the Ancient Eastern Mediterranean

How new technology reshaped the political equilibrium of the early Iron Age through violence.

www.broadstreet.blog

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Irwin (Bud) Collier @irwincollier.bsky.social · Sep 23

#EconSky Another reminder that European economic history was a core element in the training of early 20th century economists. Consider Howard Levi Gray and Edwin Francis Gay's course offerings for 1909-10 at Harvard... www.irwincollier.com/harvard-euro...

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · Sep 7

For anyone interested, the paper is available in open access here:
academic.oup.com/ereh/article...

Anatomy of a premodern state

Abstract. We provide a blueprint for constructing measures of state capacity in premodern states, offering several advantages over the current state of the

academic.oup.com

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · Sep 7

🥳 Shameless self-promotion annoucement!
Honored to have received the Figuerola Prize for the best article published in the European Review of Economic History in the last 2 years, for «Anatomy of a Premodern State», with Lenor F. Costa & António Henriques!

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Dr Victoria Bateman @vnbateman.bsky.social · Aug 28

Did you know that 40% of big game hunters in the Americas were women, and so too were 40% of brewers in medieval London? Find out about women’s involvement in the economy from the Stone Age to the present in my new book #Economica - out now @headlinebooks.bsky.social #econhist

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Sheilagh Ogilvie @sheilaghogilvie.bsky.social · Aug 21

Looking forward talking about “Controlling Contagion” at the Radboud Conference next week, and learning more answers to its key question: “How Did We Lift the Burden?” www.ru.nl/en/about-us/... @oxford-esh.bsky.social @timriswick.bsky.social @oxhistoryfaculty.bsky.social

Keynote “Controlling Contagion: Epidemics and Institutions from Plague to Covid” | Radboud University

In this keynote lecture, prof. Sheilagh Ogilvie will explain how societies have historically managed epidemics through various social institutions.

www.ru.nl

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Sheilagh Ogilvie @sheilaghogilvie.bsky.social · Aug 21

New CEPR Discussion Paper - DP20556
Transplanting Craft Guilds to Colonial Latin America: A Large Language Model Analysis cepr.org/publications... @oxhistoryfaculty.bsky.social @oxford-esh.bsky.social #echist‬

DP20556 Transplanting Craft Guilds to Colonial Latin America: A Large Language Model Analysis

What can we learn about institutional transplantation by analyzing craft guilds in colonial Latin America? We use large language models (LLMs) to investigate colonial guild ordinances, addressing two major bottlenecks in assessing institutions: digitizing qualitative sources efficiently and analyzing them quantitatively. Our newly designed methodology reveals both long-term continuities and striking differences between craft guilds in colonial Mexico and Peru, particularly with regard to human capital and product quality. The LLM-based approach identifies patterns that were previously not discernible using standard methods in economic history, its results are reproducible, and it can easily be extended to other historical settings.

cepr.org

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Our World in Data @ourworldindata.org · Aug 18

Hostility toward homosexuality remains common in many of the world’s largest countries—

This chart shows the share of people who say homosexuality cannot be justified across five of the world’s most populous countries.

Together, these countries are home to nearly half of the global population.

Reposted by Nuno Palma

John Holbein @johnholbein1.bsky.social · Aug 18

"After a natural experiment is ﬁrst used, other researchers often reuse the setting, examining different outcome[s]..."

"...we use simulations based on real data to illustrate the multiple hypothesis testing problem that arises when researchers reuse natural experiments."

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Daniela Vidart @danielavidart.bsky.social · Aug 15

‼️Come join us for the RIDGE Growth and Development in Macro Workshop!

December 11-12 in beautiful Montevideo🇺🇾

Submission deadline 👉 September 30

More info & submission link 👉 ridge.org.uy/wp-content/u...

Reposted by Stefan Müller, Nuno Palma

John Holbein @johnholbein1.bsky.social · Aug 1

This figure shows the percent of political science articles that at least have a reproduction archive. {a pretty low bar in and of itself, but still}

Steady improvement, but still a long way to go!

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Dr Victoria Bateman @vnbateman.bsky.social · Jul 31

Want to read an “erudite, ambitious & richly global” book that “sets a new standard in economic history”? Then my forthcoming book #Economica is for you. If you’re in the UK, for tonight only you can get 25% off if you preorder @waterstones.bsky.social: www.waterstones.com/book/economi... #SUMMER25

Economica by Victoria Bateman | Waterstones

Buy Economica by Victoria Bateman from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25.

www.waterstones.com

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Dr Victoria Bateman @vnbateman.bsky.social · Jul 31

Just four weeks to go until the publication of my new book #ECONOMICA: A Global History of Women, Wealth & Power @headlinebooks.bsky.social @hachetteuk.bsky.social on 28 August. It’s time to place women at the heart of economic history. #womenwealthpower #econhist

Reposted by Kevin O’Rourke, Sebastian Braun, Patrick Wallis , and 2 more Kevin O’Rourke, Sebastian Braun, Patrick Wallis, Nuno Palma, Alice Reid

Sheilagh Ogilvie @sheilaghogilvie.bsky.social · Mar 26

JOB OPPORTUNITY: Associate Professorship in Economic and Social History, Faculty of History and All Souls College, Oxford. Deadline for applications 23 April 2025. @oxford-esh.bsky.social @oxhistoryfaculty.bsky.social my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...

Job Details

my.corehr.com

Reposted by Nuno Palma, Charlotte Bartels

Felix Kersting @felixkersting.bsky.social · Jul 22

Finally out in print: Testing Marx, with @charlottebartels.bsky.social and Niko Wolf! History of thought with numbers. Have a look: direct.mit.edu/rest/article... (open access)

Testing Marx: Capital Accumulation, Income Inequality, and Socialism in Late Nineteenth-Century Germany

Abstract. We study the dynamics of capital accumulation, income inequality, capital concentration, and voting up to 1914. Based on new panel data for Prussian regions, we reevaluate the famous revisio...

direct.mit.edu

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Guilherme Lambais @glambais.bsky.social · May 25

Deadline tomorrow for the “New Economic History of Brazil” conference in September. Come join us in the historical district of Belém in Lisboa! Details: nofuturepast.wordpress.com/2025/01/17/c...

Reposted by Nuno Palma

STICERD & CASE @ LSE @lse-sticerd-case.bsky.social · May 21

"Justices of the Peace: Legal Foundations of the Industrial Revolution"
New @cepr.org discussion paper by Tim Besley, Dan Bogart, Jonathan Chapman, and @nunopgpalma.bsky.social cepr.org/publications...

DP20214 Justices of the Peace: Legal Foundations of the Industrial Revolution

We show that state legal capacity contributed to economic development during the Industrial Revolution. The British parliament relied on local magistrates, known as Justices of the Peace (JPs), to enforce property rights, resolve disputes, and administer public services. Areas with greater legal capacity – more JPs – in 1700 experienced greater population growth and structural change over 140 years. More legal capacity also led to more human capital, fiscal capacity, and infrastructure development. Plausibly exogenous variation in the location of JPs supports a causal interpretation of the findings. These results illustrate the importance of street-level legal institutions for economic outcomes.

cepr.org

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Thilo N. H. Albers @thiloalbers.bsky.social · May 17

We are looking to hire post-doc interested in working on migration, citizenship, and diaspora. Come join us in Münster! Generous contract + no teaching for 2 years.

Many details and link to job add here:

sites.google.com/site/tnhalbe...

Please PM me incase you have questions!

Thilo N. H. Albers - Job ads

2 years postdoc with a thematic focus on Migration, Diaspora, Citizenship

sites.google.com

Reposted by Nuno Palma

Sheilagh Ogilvie @sheilaghogilvie.bsky.social · May 16

A pleasure to talk about serfdom and my Leverhulme project yesterday at the Arthur Lewis Lab for Comparative Development. @oxford-esh.bsky.social @arthurlewislab.bsky.social @leverhulme.ac.uk #echist

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

🧩 The takeaway?
Institutions also operate locally. Local legal actors — even unpaid ones — can shape economic trajectories in powerful ways.
The state was heavily involved with the First Industrial Revolution.
Link to the paper:
documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx...
7/7

documents.manchester.ac.uk

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

JPs helped towns capitalize on the Industrial Revolution:
⚙️ Industrial towns near coalfields grew faster with more JPs;
📈 JPs helped enforce contracts, settle disputes, and foster trust;
The effects appear gradually over time! The choice of the outcome year is not critical.
6/7

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

Crucially, the location of JPs in 1700 was not driven by anticipated growth — meaning the effect is causal, not just correlation.
In other words: more JPs → better long-term development outcomes. 5/7

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

We find that counties with more JPs in 1700 saw:
✅ Higher population growth
✅ Faster urbanization
✅ Greater economic diversification
✅ More infrastructure and innovation
✅ Better human capital (via apprenticeships)
4/7

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

🔍 Who were the JPs?
They were local elites—usually unpaid, but powerful—tasked with matters from contract enforcement to infrastructure oversight.
Their presence made legal systems more accessible, faster, & cheaper—especially in an age before a professional paid bureaucracy 3/7

Nuno Palma @nunopgpalma.bsky.social · May 1

We often hear the state had little to do with Britain’s Industrial Revolution. We argue otherwise.
Using novel data, we show that “street-level” legal capacity, via JPs, played a crucial role in enforcing property rights, resolving disputes & managing public goods. 2/7

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