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— CH. 1 · LEIDEN TO HAIFA —

Joel Mokyr

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  • Joel Mokyr was born in Leiden, Netherlands, on the 26th of July 1946. His family were Dutch Jews who had survived the Holocaust before his birth. When he was one year old, his father Salomon Mok died of cancer. The young boy grew up with a single mother named Gonda Mok. In 1955, she brought him to Israel as a child. They settled in the city of Haifa where he spent his formative years.

  • Mokyr earned a B.A. in economics and history from Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1968. He then moved to Yale University for graduate studies. He received an M.Phil. in economics there in 1972. A Ph.D. in economics followed in 1974. His dissertation focused on Industrial Growth and Stagnation in the Low Countries between 1800 and 1850. An acting instructor role at Yale lasted from 1972 to 1973. He became an assistant professor at Northwestern University in 1974. He has remained at that institution ever since.

  • The economist published A Culture of Growth: The Origins of the Modern Economy in 2016. This book presented explanations for the Industrial Revolution. Deirdre McCloskey described it as brilliant yet long. She noted it sustained interest down to page 337. Brad DeLong wrote in Nature that Mokyr might be broadly correct despite other theories. Victoria Bateman pointed out growth-boosting factors beyond state or market control. The Economist highlighted distinctions between culture as ideas versus genetic inheritance. Geoffrey Hodgson criticized placing too much weight on extraordinary people.

  • Reviews appeared in Foreign Affairs, The Independent, and the Journal of Economic Literature. Diane Coyle offered a favorable assessment of the work. Cambridge economic historian Victoria Bateman found the focus on culture welcome but controversial among economists. The article in The Economist insisted on fine definitional distinctions regarding social learning. Critics debated whether cultural prerequisites truly drove technological progress. Some scholars felt the explanation relied heavily on specific individuals rather than broad trends. The debate continued within academic circles regarding the role of ideas in history.

  • Mokyr was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1996. He became a Fellow of the Econometric Society in 2011. A foreign membership in the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences came in 2001. He received the biennial Heineken Award for History in 2006 from that academy. His election as a foreign member of the British Academy followed later. He also joined the Accademia dei Lincei. The Balzan International Prize for economic history arrived in 2015. He was named a Distinguished Fellow by the American Economic Association in 2018. A Clarivate Citation laureate title in Economic Sciences appeared in 2021.

  • The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was awarded to Joel Mokyr in 2025. He shared half the prize with Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt who took the other half. The committee cited his identification of prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress. They credited him with demonstrating that innovations require scientific explanations for why they work. This self-generating process depends on knowing more than just what functions. The award recognized decades of research into how societies achieve long-term economic expansion.

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1946 births20th-century American economists21st-century American economistsAcademic staff of Tel Aviv UniversityAmerican economic historiansAmerican Nobel laureatesAmerican people of Dutch-Jewish descentCorresponding fellows of the British AcademyDutch emigrants to the United StatesDutch JewsDutch Nobel laureatesEconomic historiansFellows of the American Academy of Arts and SciencesFellows of the Econometric SocietyHebrew University of Jerusalem alumniHistorians of IrelandIsraeli Nobel laureatesIsraeli people of Dutch-Jewish descentJewish American historiansJewish Nobel laureatesMembers of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and SciencesNobel laureates in EconomicsNorthwestern University facultyPeople from LeidenPresidents of the Economic History AssociationWinners of the Heineken PrizeYale University alumni

Common questions

When and where was Joel Mokyr born?

Joel Mokyr was born in Leiden, Netherlands, on the 26th of July 1946. His family were Dutch Jews who had survived the Holocaust before his birth.

What university did Joel Mokyr attend for his graduate studies?

Joel Mokyr moved to Yale University for graduate studies after earning a B.A. from Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1968. He received an M.Phil. in economics there in 1972 and a Ph.D. in economics in 1974.

Who won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences with Joel Mokyr in 2025?

Joel Mokyr shared half the prize with Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt who took the other half. The committee cited his identification of prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress.

Which book by Joel Mokyr explains the origins of the modern economy?

The economist published A Culture of Growth: The Origins of the Modern Economy in 2016. This book presented explanations for the Industrial Revolution and sparked debate regarding cultural prerequisites driving technological progress.

When did Joel Mokyr receive the Balzan International Prize for economic history?

The Balzan International Prize for economic history arrived in 2015. He was named a Distinguished Fellow by the American Economic Association in 2018 and became a Clarivate Citation laureate title in Economic Sciences in 2021.

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