Abstract
Debates about the nature and economic role of money are mostly informed by
evidence from the 20th century, but money has existed for millennia. We argue
that there are many lessons to be learned from monetary history that are relevant
for current topics of policy relevance. The past acts as a source of evidence on how
money works across different situations, helping to tease out features of money that
do not depend on one time and place. A close reading of history also offers testing
grounds for models of economic behavior and can thereby guide theories on how
money is transmitted to the real economy.
evidence from the 20th century, but money has existed for millennia. We argue
that there are many lessons to be learned from monetary history that are relevant
for current topics of policy relevance. The past acts as a source of evidence on how
money works across different situations, helping to tease out features of money that
do not depend on one time and place. A close reading of history also offers testing
grounds for models of economic behavior and can thereby guide theories on how
money is transmitted to the real economy.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Annual Review of Economics |
| Volume | 16 |
| Early online date | 14 Jun 2024 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 14 Jun 2024 |
Keywords
- monetary policy
- monetary history
- natural experiments
- policy experiments
- identification in macroeconomics
