ABSTRACT

How did globalisation affect living standards and inequality in colonies relying on exports? This question is investigated through a comparison of social and economic developments in two regions of the Dutch East Indies (colonial Indonesia): Minangkabau in West Sumatra and Priangan in West Java, looking at the period between 1800 and 1940. These two regions were remarkably similar in terms of export crops grown and factor endowments and the Dutch colonial government implemented a comparable system of forced coffee cultivation in both these areas in the nineteenth century. Outcomes in terms of levels of income and economic inequality in these areas differed markedly, mainly as a result of different indigenous property rights regarding land and the power of local elites. This article highlights the interaction between indigenous and colonial institutions and the importance of this interaction for social and economic development in an age of rising global trade.

摘要

全球化如何影响依赖出口的殖民地的生活水平和不平等？通过比较荷属东印度群岛（印度尼西亚殖民地）两个地区的社会和经济发展来研究这个问题：西苏门答腊的米南加保和西爪哇的普里安安，观察 1800 年至 1940 年之间的时期。这两个地区非常相似在出口作物种植和要素禀赋方面，荷兰殖民政府在 19 世纪在这两个地区实施了类似的强制咖啡种植系统。这些地区在收入水平和经济不平等方面的结果存在显着差异，主要是由于土著对土地的财产权不同，以及当地精英的权力不同。