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Sun Jun 1 09:10:13 2008 |
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<001c01c8c19f$160bebe0$0200a8c0@mason> |
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Does anyone have a good article on the history of
the term "economics"? I find it significant that
the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary, begun in
1878 and completed in 1928 and meant to be the
last word on English words, does not even have an
entry for "economics," neither in the main
section nor in the supplement. The latest edition
gives Ralph Waldo Emerson as the first use of the
term in the modern sense in 1841. Benjamin
Disraeli uses the term in 1844, apparently as a
way to separate the pesky topic of morals from
the science of political economy. I believe it
was Jevons who suggested that a change in terms
was necessary to reflect the "scientific" nature
of marginalism, but I don't think the term comes
into general usage until A. E. Marshall's
Principles of Economics, which begins, "Political
Economy, or Economics, is a study of man's
actions in the ordinary business of life; it
inquires how he gets his income and how he uses
it." It is significant, is it not, that he has to
use the older term first. He is clearly innovating.
Any help is appreciated.
John C. M?daille
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