On japanese economic thought see Tessa Morris-Suzuki, A History of Japanese
Economic Thought, 1991.

Regarding Persia and the division of labour it is interesting to note that
Xenophon's discussion of the division of labour starts with the Persian king's
court and the preparation of the royal meals (ta para basilei sita).
(Cyropaedia bk 8, ch. 5. sec. 2) [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?
doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0203%3Abook%3D8%3Achapter%3D2%3Asection%3D5]

But as Gloria Vivenza correctly points out in referring to this passage (Adam
Smith and the classics, 2001, p. 135): "Antiquity lacked the systematic
application of this method and thus failed to realize the scale of its
potential".

Despite recent and not so recent scholarship, however, the fact remains that
the actual contribution of the ancient greek, roman, rabbinical, islamic,
byzantine and scholastic authors on economic theory was not important.
Aristotle, Cicero, Averroes, Maimonides and Aquinas were intellectual giants
but they were not economists. Political economy is very much a European 18th
century thing.

Nicholas J. Theocarakis