This thesis comprises the first systematic application of the theory of public goods to the study of the economics of Egypt during the 5000 years of its history. That history has provided an unparalleled experiment under quasi laboratory conditions. From the period of great coincidence that introduced agricultural technology in the Nile Valley, to the present day, that river with its system of irrigation has been an essentially indivisible instrument of production, a public good that has almost always dominated the economy. Over the ages, the country has been controlled by various rulers representing a number of very different civilizations: Pharaohs, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Turks and British. Each new conquest influenced Egypt in its own way and introduced an element of foreign culture. Despite the diversity of these external influences, the qualities of timelessnes and changelessness have never ceased to mark the Egyptian scene. There has been a unique continuity in basic institutions and in the form and functions of government. In examining the economic history of Egypt, marked as it is by this same continuity, the present thesis proves to constitute a confirmation of the theory of public goods.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.77115 |
| Date | January 1980 |
| Creators | Rizk, Nabila El-Hamawi. |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Department of Economics) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 000137274, proquestno: AAINK54900, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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