Reflections on the Economic History of South Africa

In considering the study of economic history in and of South Africa, there is a need to make a distinction between the economic history of South Africa and economic history in South Africa. The peculiarities of capitalist development in the country and the glare of political light that this has attracted means that writers from outside have often generated important ideas as well as written studies set in South Africa, especially in the wake of the anti-apartheid movement. They have also extended debates beyond what South African academic life could or can hold. This will be the main focus of the following chapter.