2022/26 | LEM Working Paper Series | ||||||||||||||||
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Wars, Depression, and Fascism: Income Inequality in Italy, 1900-1950 |
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Maria Gomez Leon and Giacomo Gabbuti |
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Keywords | |||||||||||||||||
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Fascist Italy; income inequality; interwar Europe; dynamic social tables.
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JEL Classifications | |||||||||||||||||
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D31, E24, E25, J31, N34
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Abstract | |||||||||||||||||
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This paper shows yearly estimates of income inequality in Italy from 1900 to
1950. By constructing dynamic social tables, we comprehensively assess inequality
across all components of Italian society. In a context of declining inequality across
Europe, interwar Italy reveals a singular trajectory with a rise in inequality during
WW1, markedly reversed during 1918-1922, resumed after the March on Rome and
with a further increase during WW2. While consolidating the reinterpretation of
inequality in interwar Europe, by showing so far overlooked short-term distributive
shocks in Italy, our findings confirm the regressive nature of Italian Fascism.
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