State formation in Historical Perspective

The course focuses on the emergence and consolidation of ancient and modern states in global human history. It begins by examining the rise of the earliest forms of hierarchy in human societies and then moves on to analyze the factors underpinning the formation of the first ancient territorial states around the world, while also addressing the persistence of non-state spaces across history. The course also explores how scholars can use prehistorical records to reconstruct quantitative aspects of ancient and early modern societies. It then examines pre-modern political and social institutions from a global comparative perspective. In particular, the course studies how different regions diverged in their adoption of foundational social institutions (such as the city and the clan), how they organized political, legal, and fiscal institutions in distinct ways, and the consequences of these differences for hierarchy and wealth inequality.

• Grading will be based on in-class presentations (45% of the final grade) and a home assignment (55% of the final grade)