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The Global and Local: Explaining Migrant Remittance Flows in the English-Speaking World, 1880–1914

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 March 2006

GARY B. MAGEE  and
ANDREW S. THOMPSON
GARY B. MAGEE
Affiliation:
Associate Professor, Department of Economics, University of Melbourne, Parkville VIC 3010, Australia. E-mail: g.magee@unimelb.edu.au.
ANDREW S. THOMPSON
Affiliation:
Professor, School of History, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, The United Kingdom. E-mail: A.S.Thompson@leeds.ac.uk.
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Abstract

This article uses money order data to examine the determinants of British migrant remittances prior to 1914. Using panel data and cointegration analysis, it provides evidence of four distinct types of remittance behavior, lending support to Lucas and Stark's theory that remittances are driven by an implicit contract between remitter and remittee. The relative strengths of these different forms of remittance varied across the English-speaking world, with the largest differences occurring between migrants residing in America and those in the self-governing dominions. The explanation for these differences is seen to lie in the distinctive nature of British emigration to America.

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ARTICLES
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The Journal of Economic History , Volume 66 , Issue 1 , March 2006 , pp. 177 - 202
Copyright
© 2006 The Economic History Association

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