Holland 1732

Consolidated income group / Weighted number of households / Percentage of population / Per capita income
(inguilder per annum) / Income in terms of per capita mean
1 / 220 / 7.11 / 5 / 0.07
2 / 192 / 6.20 / 6 / 0.09
3 / 472 / 15.25 / 15 / 0.22
4 / 292 / 9.42 / 24 / 0.35
5 / 336.75 / 10.88 / 25 / 0.37
6 / 277.125 / 8.95 / 35 / 0.52
7 / 144.125 / 4.66 / 45 / 0.66
8 / 277 / 8.96 / 48 / 0.71
9 / 75.125 / 2.43 / 55 / 0.81
10 / 42.375 / 1.37 / 65 / 0.96
11 / 176 / 5.70 / 72 / 1.06
12 / 31.5 / 1.02 / 75 / 1.11
13 / 23.25 / 0.75 / 85 / 1.25
14 / 27 / 0.87 / 95 / 1.40
15 / 77 / 2.48 / 96 / 1.42
16 / 26.75 / 0.86 / 110 / 1.62
17 / 56 / 1.82 / 120 / 1.77
18 / 23.5 / 0.76 / 130 / 1.92
19 / 32 / 1.05 / 144 / 2.12
20 / 24.75 / 0.80 / 150 / 2.21
21 / 17 / 0.54 / 168 / 2.48
22 / 11.25 / 0.36 / 170 / 2.51
23 / 16.125 / 0.52 / 190 / 2.80
24 / 19 / 0.62 / 192 / 2.83
25 / 10 / 0.31 / 216 / 3.19
26 / 26.25 / 0.85 / 225 / 3.32
27 / 10 / 0.31 / 240 / 3.54
28 / 5 / 0.16 / 264 / 3.89
29 / 25 / 0.81 / 275 / 4.06
30 / 2 / 0.08 / 288 / 4.25
31 / 17.25 / 0.56 / 325 / 4.79
32 / 11.75 / 0.38 / 375 / 5.53
33 / 12.625 / 0.41 / 425 / 6.27
34 / 30 / 0.97 / 450 / 6.64
35 / 12.5 / 0.40 / 475 / 7.01
36 / 5.5 / 0.18 / 525 / 7.74
37 / 5.125 / 0.17 / 575 / 8.48
38 / 4.625 / 0.15 / 625 / 9.22
39 / 4.75 / 0.15 / 675 / 9.95
40 / 5.5 / 0.18 / 750 / 11.06
41 / 5.625 / 0.18 / 850 / 12.54
42 / 3.875 / 0.13 / 950 / 14.01
43 / 4 / 0.13 / 1150 / 16.96
44 / 1.75 / 0.06 / 1400 / 20.65
45 / 1.75 / 0.06 / 1750 / 25.81
46 / 0.25 / 0.01 / 2250 / 33.18
Total / 3095 / 100 / 67..8 / 1

Income distribution data: The income distribution data are derived from taxes on dwelling rents. The rental values of all dwellings (including the poor) were taxed. We know that dwelling rents were highly correlated with income (Williamson 1985; van den Berg and van Zanden, 1988: pp. 193-215), but we also know that the elasticity of rents to income was less than one (between 0.72 and 0.75 in 1852-1910 Britain: Williamson 1985, p. 225). Thus, income inequality should be understated by rental values. With that understood, the source of the Dutch data is van Zanden (1995).

The consolidated Holland data for 1732 are obtained as a weighted average of distributions of household income for five regions: Amsterdam (with the weight of 25 percent), Delft (12.5 percent), countryside (37.5 percent), townships (12.5 percent) and Leiden (12.5 percent). The first four regions have the same income groups (with income ranges varying between 5 and 2250 guilders). Leiden’s distribution has different income ranges, going from 6 to over 400 guilders. The data in the table give a consolidated all-Holland distribution. The data for five regions were kindly provided by Jan Luiten van Zanden.

Population and area: Population is interpolated between 1500 and 1600 (983,176), and between 1700 and 1820 (2,002,783), from Maddison (2001). Weuse the area of modern Holland (21,680 km2).

Urbanization rate: From de Vries (1985).

Mean income in $PPP: GDP per capita in 1990 international dollars interpolated between 1500 and 1600, and between 1700 and 1820, from Maddison (2001: p. 264).

REFERENCES

de Vries, Jan (1985), “The Population and Economy of the Preindustrial Netherlands,” Journal of Interdisciplinary History XV, 4 (Spring): 661-85.

Maddison, Angus (2001), The World Economy: A Millennial Perspectives, Paris: OECD Development Centre.

van den Berg, W. J. and J. L. van Zanden (1988), “Vier eeuwen welstandlijkheid in Alkmaar, ca 1530-1930,” Tijdschrift voor Sociale Geschiedenis 19: 193-2

van Zanden, Jan Luiten (1995), “Tracing the beginning of the Kuznets curve: western Europe during the early modern period,” Economic History Review XLVIII, 4: 643-64.

Williamson, Jeffrey G. (1985), Did British Capitalism Breed Inequality?Cambridge: CambridgeUniversity Press.