Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind · chapter 16 · id sapiens-c16-02-before-the-modern-era-the-econ
“Before the modern era, the economy was universally understood as zero-sum -- the idea that the economic pie could grow was a revolutionary modern insight.”
CONTESTEDconfidence: high⚠ extracted by pipeline, re-audit pending
Receipts
Mokyr (2016), A Culture of Growth, Princeton UPDOI registry: valid
What changed was not the invention of credit or growth thinking, but the institutionalization of innovation as a reliable source of growth. The transition was more nuanced than a sudden zero-sum to growth-mindset shift.
Ibn Khaldun (1377/trans.), Muqaddimah -- on economic cycles and trade surplusFLAGGED: DOI not in registry
Ibn Khaldun discussed economic cycles, division of labor benefits, and how trade creates surplus value approximately 400 years before Adam Smith. Pre-modern thinkers understood economic growth.
Elvin (1973), The Pattern of the Chinese Past, Stanford UPDOI registry: valid
Song Dynasty China (960-1279) experienced proto-industrial growth, paper money, extensive credit networks. Chinese officials debated monetary expansion and economic growth centuries before European capitalism.
This claim is a stable, citable object. If you can falsify a verdict, tell us. Corrections are loud here.