| 1. |
- Edvinsson, Rodney, 1971-, et al.
(author)
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A Consumer Price Index for Sweden, 1290–2008
- 2011
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In: The Review of Income and Wealth. - : Wiley. - 0034-6586 .- 1475-4991. ; 57:2, s. 270-292
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper presents a Consumer Price Index for Sweden 1290–2008. Constructing an index that covers more than seven centuries poses conceptual and empirical problems, and demands some methodological innovations. For example, during numerous occasions the currency unit was changed, and in some periods multiple currencies were used at floating exchange rates relative to each other. This paper also presents two different price indices, one that mainly serves the purposes of estimating real prices and real wages, and another that provides a measure of inflation. While the former follows the main currency unit, the latter also takes into account that debased coins were devalued during recoinage.
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| 2. |
- Nordlund Edvinsson, Therese, et al.
(author)
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Servants and Bourgeois Life in Urban Sweden in the Early Twentieth Century
- 2010
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In: Scandinavian Journal of History. - Oslo : Routledge. - 0346-8755 .- 1502-7716. ; 35:4, s. 427-450
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- By 1900, most Swedish servants had a rural background. They had migrated to the city from the countryside to perform domestic service in private households. Here they met bourgeois ideals of the comfortable home where the masters could demand home-cooked meals, clean clothes and pleasant surroundings. Servants were needed in order to fulfil this ideal. Yet, the number of domestic servants declined strongly in urban Sweden during the first half of the Twentieth Century. This development is often called ‘the servant crisis’. We explore the background to the scarcity of servants, the relationships between masters and servants, and the role of servants in creating economic and cultural distinctions. We analyze the various adaptations of bourgeois households to the decline of domestic servants. Qualitative sources from private letters, diaries and autobiographies are combined with quantitative evidence from censuses.
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| 3. |
- Söderberg, Johan, 1950-
(author)
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A Stagnating City : Stockholm in the First Half of the Nineteenth Century
- 2009
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In: Revue d’Histoire Nordique. - Toulouse : Université Toulouse Il-Le Mirail. - 1778-9605. ; :6-7, s. 227-246
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)abstract
- During the first half of the nineteenth century, Stockholm experienced serious economic and demographic problems. Sweden as a whole entered a new phase of economic growth, but Stockholm was stagnating.The death rate in the capital was extremely high in comparison with most European cities. A high proportion of children were born out of wedlock. The textile industry declined, and there was little expansion in other branches of industry. Seasonal unemployment was high. On the other hand, new patterns of consumption were emerging, real wages were beginning to rise. Some measures were taken in order to reduce unemployment during winter. Fearing food riots, King Jean Baptiste initiated public works financed by private loans from him in 1817 to ease unemployment among sailors and building workers. Stockholm’s situation is discussed in a regional and comparative perspective.
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| 4. |
- Söderberg, Johan, 1950-
(author)
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Grain Prices in Cairo and Europe in the Middle Ages
- 2006
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In: Research in Economic History. - Amsterdam : Elsevier JAI. - 0363-3268. ; 24, s. 189-216
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper compares grain prices between Cairo and Europe during medieval times. Prices were higher and more volatile in Cairo than in Europe. Over time, price levels declined in large parts of Europe but not in Cairo. No price integration can be seen between the European Mediterranean region and Cairo. In north-western Europe, a cluster of urban centers showing similar price movements had emerged in the fourteenth century, at the latest. The Mediterranean area was not integrated into this network. Price integration in north-western Europe may have contributed to the economic advancement of this region in late medieval and early modern times. Climatic fluctuations (in temperature as well as in the water level of the Nile) affected Cairo grain prices. In Europe, on the other hand, short-term temperature variation did not have an appreciable impact on prices. Western European price integration cannot, it seems, be explained by the existence of a common climatic factor. Early European economic development was facilitated by a robust environment. Document Options:Content accessView HTMLView PDFReferences References (40) Reprints & permissions RequestMarked listAdd to:Session © Emerald Group Publishing Limited | Copyright info | Site Policies .
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| 5. |
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| 6. |
- Söderberg, Johan, 1950-, et al.
(author)
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Svenska spannmålspriser under medeltiden i ett europeiskt perspektiv
- 2006
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In: Historisk Tidskrift. - Svenska historiska Föreningen. - 0345-469X .- 2002-4827. ; 126:2, s. 189-214
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Swedish Medieval Grain Prices in a European Perspective This article compares Swedish grain prices for the period 1291–1530 with European prices. All prices are expressed in grams of silver per hectolitre of grain. The analysis focuses on two aspects of the price series: the average price level and the volatility of prices. A low price level, expressed in terms of silver, is characteristic of a low-wage economy that is little monetized. High prices are typical of the advanced economies of the period. Price volatility can be seen as a welfare indicator, since great swings from year to year imply difficulties in provisioning the population. In a comparative perspective we should therefore expect a negative association between price level and volatility. This hypothesis is supported by the data: in Figure 5, based on 24 European price series, the correlation between price level and volatility is as strong as –.70. The advanced, high-price economies thus enjoyed greater price stability. Price volatility in Sweden was higher than in any other area studied here, which suggests a comparatively low level of welfare for those parts of the population who were not self-sufficient in grain. In a correlation analysis, north-west Europe stands out as a comparatively price-integrated area during medieval times. Several of the towns and regions exhibiting the strongest level of price integration are found in the Low Countries, but England and parts of Germany were also included in this area (Figure 6). In contrast, Sweden was only weakly price-integrated with north-west Europe and the North German town of Rostock. Finally, the article discusses the possible impact of short-run climatological variations on prices. Estimates of medieval temperature and precipitation in England correlate rather weakly with wheat yields and wheat prices, whereas correlations with grain prices are much stronger. This suggests that the observed price integration in north-west Europe may be seen mainly as the result of economic integration and not as an effect of shared variations in climate. This is a preliminary conclusion, however, since estimates of medieval temperature and precipitation are as yet uncertain.
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| 7. |
- Söderberg, Johan, 1950-
(author)
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Resistance to commodification : farmland prices and rents in Sweden, 1274–1649
- 2013
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In: Scandinavian Economic History Review. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0358-5522 .- 1750-2837. ; 61:1, s. 82-99
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Long historical series of farmland prices and rents are rare, especially for the pre-industrial era. This article makes two contributions: (1) series of land prices and rents are presented for a peripheral economy of the time, East Sweden, in the period 1274–1649. Phases of decline and growth are compared to those of some other European regions; (2) the effects of certain anti-capitalist institutions on farmland prices are explored. An unanticipated trait of the Swedish series is that land prices declined during most of the sixteenth century, despite resurging population growth. Regulations aimed at counteracting the commodification of land were in effect during this period, exerting a downward pressure on prices.
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| 8. |
- Franzén, Bo, 1954-, et al.
(author)
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Hus, gårdar och gatubodar : Fastighetspriser i Stockholm och Arboga 1300–1600
- 2018
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In: Historisk Tidskrift. - 0345-469X .- 2002-4827. ; 138:2, s. 227-254
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- I denna uppsats undersöks priserna på fastigheter i Stockholm och Arboga 1300–1600. Fast egendom var den viktigaste materiella resursen i det förindustriella samhället, har trots det prisutvecklingen på fastigheter tidigare inte studerats systematiskt för någon svensk stad. Stockholm och Arboga är de städer som lämpar sig bäst för en sådan undersökning, eftersom ett rikt källmaterial i form av jordeböcker och tänkeböcker har bevarats från dem. Dessa källor registrerar priser på och värderingar av olika slag av fastigheter som gjorts i samband med köp och försäljningar. Omkring 3 000 prisnoteringar ligger till grund för uppsatsen. Här visas bland annat att priserna i Stockholm sjönk svagt på lång sikt och att nedgången var kraftigare i samband med pestepidemier.
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| 9. |
- Edvinsson, Rodney, 1971-, et al.
(author)
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Prices and the growth of the knowledge economy in Sweden and Western Europe before the industrial revolution
- 2011
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In: Scandinavian Economic History Review. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0358-5522 .- 1750-2837. ; 59:3, s. 250-272
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This article uses long-term series of real prices for various goods and services to analyse the evolution of the knowledge economy before the Industrial Revolution by focusing on Sweden in comparison with other European countries. During the early modern period, the relative price of knowledge-intensive goods and services, such as iron, paper, salt, sea transports and silver, decreased relative to a Consumer Price Index. The increased productivity levels of these goods and services were caused by increased division of labour and accelerated diffusion of knowledge. However, the real price of foodstuff tended to increase, implying that living standards declined with increased population. Early modern Western Europe acquired a peculiar price structure, characterized by low prices of industrial goods relative to the price of food. Only with the advent of industrial society could the knowledge economy escape the Malthusian entrapment.
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| 10. |
- Retsö, Dag, 1961-, et al.
(author)
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The late-medieval crisis quantified : Real taxes in Sweden, 1320-1550
- 2015
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In: Scandinavian Journal of History. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0346-8755 .- 1502-7716. ; 40:1, s. 1-24
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The article aims to assess the size of secular taxes in medieval Sweden in real terms. The size of taxes is calculated as the quantity of butter and the number of oxen that could be bought for a given tax sum. In addition, nominal taxes are converted into grams of silver. Three distinctive periods are discerned: (1) a phase of low taxes 1320–1363; (2) a period of very high taxes from 1363 up to the Engelbrekt uprising in 1434; and (3) a new phase of low taxes up to the mid-16th century. A study of taxes at the regional and national levels makes it possible to evaluate the weight of the main regions of the kingdom (including Finland) in the central fiscal system at the end of the medieval era. A national overview of the situation around 1530 is put forward. During the period of high fiscal pressure in Sweden in the decades around 1400, taxes per taxpayer were much higher than those of England. In the low-tax periods, on the other hand, taxes were insufficient to create a working monopoly of violence. The result was drawn-out conflict between warlords for a large part of the 15th century and well into the 16th century.
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