Wealth inequality in northwestern Anatolia under the Ottomans, 1460–1870

Abstract

While studies indicate that economic inequality increased in the early modern period, it is debated whether this applied to all regions, and what the causes of change were. This paper studies long-term wealth inequality in the Ottoman Empire, and its possible determinants, using data from Anatolia. Inequality tended to track demographic and economic change, but evidence for a long-term correlation is inconclusive, whereas there is evidence for the long-term disequalizing impact of taxation and changing power relations. The divergence between cities and countryside suggests structural shifts caused by external factors, and comparison with the slow economies of Europe reveals diversity within this group.