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American Economic Review: Vol. 101 No. 3 (May 2011)

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The Impact of the Transatlantic Slave Trade on Ethnic Stratification in Africa

Article Citation

Whatley, Warren, and Rob Gillezeau. 2011. "The Impact of the Transatlantic Slave Trade on Ethnic Stratification in Africa." American Economic Review, 101(3): 571-76.

DOI: 10.1257/aer.101.3.571

Abstract

In the last 15 years, economists and economic historians have argued that Africa has undergone a "reversal of fortune" and that ethnic fragmentation is a significant cause of Africa's underdevelopment. In this article, we join these narratives by arguing that the transatlantic slave trade increased the degree of ethnic heterogeneity in Africa today. Using both correlational and causal instrumental variables analysis, we find an economically and statistically significant positive relationship between slave exports and ethnic heterogeneity. This relationship is robust to changes in the scheme for drawing ethnic boundaries and the choice of observational unit.

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Online Appendix (116.46 KB)

Authors

Whatley, Warren (U MI)
Gillezeau, Rob (U MI)

JEL Classifications

J11: Demographic Trends and Forecasts; General Migration
J15: Economics of Minorities and Races; Non-labor Discrimination
O15: Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
O47: Measurement of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence


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