The Rise and Fall of ‘The World of Economy’: Eastern Europe in 9th–12th Centuries

Abstract

The concept of Immanuel Wallerstein's refers to the world before the times of European hegemony. It was not a homogeneous economy. Regardless the scale and forms of activity, there existed separate, greater regions that were basically self-suf?cient. Apart from them there were areas where only local ties, based on the natural economy, functioned. Taking into account the above premises, Janet Abu-Lughod discussed the eight macro-regions which existed in Europe, Asia and Northern Africa in the 13th–14th century. They were mutually linked by communication routes and by the activities of the major economic centres, i.e. towns. Among these regions, the author listed the European region, extending along the axis connecting England with Italy, the Mediterranean region (from Spain to Crimea), the Mongolian region (from Bejing to Kiev) and the Egyptian region (ranging from East Africa to the Indian coast at Calicut). Different countries partially belonged to spheres which were well constituted internally by world economic entities preceeding the rise of a world system.