Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0
Author-Name: Fabio Sforzi 
Author-Email:
Author-Workplace-Name: Università di Parma - Dipartimento di Economia
Title: Il distretto industriale: da Marshall a Becattini 
(The industrial district: from Marshall to Becattini)
Abstract: This paper examines how the concept of industrial district, widely recognised as an Italian construct,
took shape. It assesses to what extent the concept was tailored to fit the peculiar trait of the Italian
economic development, as is claimed by some international authors, and to what extent it is the product
of an original interpretation of the thought of Alfred Marshall. The concept of industrial district
is probably the most important and is certainly best-known idea of Giacomo Becattini, the Italian
economist thanks to whom Marshall has been brought back to the collective memory of economists.
Industrial district constitutes a model of production organised by local communities in order to produce
goods to meet and steer market wants, in Italy and other countries, too. But this paper contends
that without the work of Becattini in tracing the ideological foundations of Marshall’s economic
thought, the industrial district would probably today be ignored
Classification-JEL: B31, L23, O18 
Keywords: Giacomo Becattini; distretto industriale; cluster; formazione e circolazione delle idee economiche
(Giacomo Becattini; industrial district; cluster; genesis and spread of economic ideas)
Journal: Il Pensiero Economico Italiano
Pages: 71-80
Volume: 16
Issue: 2
Year: 2008
File-URL: https://www.libraweb.net/articoli.php?chiave=200806302&rivista=63
Handle: RePEc:pei:journl:v:16:y:2008:2:3:p:71-80