ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the rural origins of the Northeast Asian miracle. It examines environmental and demographic constraints in Northeast Asia. The chapter identifies Asian mode of rural economic activities. It analyses what sorts of rural communal rules and rural organizations have evolved under this Asian mode. The chapter reviews Northeast Asian experiences, showing how the inequality of income distribution was improved and poverty alleviated at early stages of modern economic growth, and examines how these achievements could be attained in these economies. It describes the role of agriculture in the process of economic growth, with reference to historical experiences in Japan. The chapter focuses on the early stage of the economic development of the Northeast Asian economies, from the late nineteenth century to the early post World War II period, because poverty and income inequality issues were almost completely solved by the 1950s. Northeast Asian countries achieved a highly equitable income distribution at the beginning of their rapid economic growth.
