Why Is Southern Europe So Poor?

Check out our previous videos! ⬇️
🔴Why Are Japanese Companies Dead?
• Why Are Japanese Compa...
🔴Why Are Muslim Countries Poorer?
• Why Are Muslim Countri...
🔴Why Are Big Companies Fleeing China?
• Why Are Big Companies ...
✉️ Business Enquiries → [e-mail]
#Economy #Europe #economics

[@user-jj3zx6ui8q]

I think the South's focus on agriculture should be mentioned. Also from my understanding Southern Italy and Southern Spain lands were owned by nobles, and since most of the economy was agricultural all the money was earned by a small group of people. Also, most of the gold from the Americas was never used for investments. It was a resource curse where all of Spain's economy was based on gold extraction which caused Spain to be irrelevant once they lost their colonies. Most of Southern Europe was ruled by large foreign powers. Spain and Italy were ruled by the Habsburgs and Greece by the Ottomans. Southern Italy was also ruled by the Spanish. The Hapsburgs wasted a lot of the Spanish Gold on religious wars and they never invested the money on its territories. Castile was hit very hard by all the taxes and people used to fight wars for the Habsburgs. The argument of religion never made sense to me because the French were Catholic monarchs but their literacy also increased during the same period. I think the issue was mostly the focus of absolute monarchs and nobles trying to enrich themselves and maintain power and the existing order. The South's goal was to maintain power and wealth for the nobles at the expense of its lower classes and its institutions reflected that. The North's goal was to increase the wealth of its business class and traders and so it's institutions and laws were more egalitarian. Just want to clarify I am not an expert and this is just my opinion.

[@mrreziik]

mate no other countries are similar in church influence than spain and portugal

[@nativobeats4712]

I think this is very accurate

[@HusseinDoha]

Non of the above. If you look at things on a micro level (like the uploader looking for clicks). Italy is 7th or 8th largest economy in the world. Spain is 10th or 11th. Both are industrial powerhouses.

[@nativobeats4712]

@@HusseinDoha yes, you are not wrong. But even though the economies are big, how many people in spain/portugal/italy actually have a good standard of living when compared with the north of europe? More than 50% of people in portugal make the minimum salary (820€) And a huge chunk makes just a bit more than that. Italy and Spain have the same type of social/financial structure when it comes to population. Northern europe countries don’t suffer with that much financial disparity among their social classes. Of course there are billionaires and people in poverty, but I think the gap, and the amount of people in each side of the gap isn’t that big like in the PIGS.

[@HusseinDoha]

⁠@@nativobeats4712what are you talking about? How does Spain and Italy have similar financial arrangements to Portugal? 🤨 Check the graph my friend and tell me if the income per capita (Purchasing Power Parity) is wide or not between Spain/Italy and countries similar in population (France/Germany)? It’s not wide. As for quality of life, Spaniards have the highest life expectancy in the world (they passed Japan). Italians come close. But you want to compare with tiny population of Denmark or Holland, comparison is inapt. It’s like comparing NY City or London, to UK or US as a whole. Still, in case of Spain and Italy, the beat the quality of life aspects on several points. You are just compounding the error of this video! The guy compares Greece which is scattered islands with no oil to Norway with massive oil.

[@hismajesty9951]

A poorly researched video with many historical falsehoods, for instance the claim about the absence of trade monopolies in Northern Europe.

[@happyxgoxluck]

I really like these historical economic videos with these insights but they do seemed rushed to fit the 10ish minute mark.

[@bozimmerman]

I've never seen a video on this channel that was, yet when he covers subjects I know nothing about, my ignorance is his ally. Also: could it be that a larger % of the southern economy was governed by public and private trade monopolies than in the north? I mean, "absence" vs "trivial presence" is a pretty insignificant bar to hop over.

[@user-zo2ge3oe8d]

KZbin really isn’t about research. It’s about quick views and engagement. Most people watching this don’t really know what a trade monopoly is. Believe it or not some people watching this don’t really know what Northern Europe is.

[@MCLV1155]

Define poor. Also, compare a British average house to a Spanish house. Then same with diet and health. I know what I choose

[@vinhbao9738]

True. Many Brits want to spend their retirement in Spain.

[@oldskoolmusicnostalgia]

Diet, health, contacts with other people, family and friends network, weather, beauty of the landscapes, cost of living... all of that matter immensely but doesn't fit into the Anglo-Centric viewpoint. Also Nordic countries resort to a lot of taxation and welfare to hide the extent of poverty.

[@tjlisson2816]

@@oldskoolmusicnostalgia How is that hiding poverty? It's dealing with it, not ignoring it - or hiding it. The Nordic countries you just mentioned do very well in measures of health and if you don't think Scandinavia is beautiful, I doubt you've ever been there. Rather than a biased Anglo-Centric viewpoint, why not consider the far more pervasive stereotype people like you want to believe which is that the cultures and way of life of southern Europeans are inherently superior - even though studies show that most northern nations are actually happier. I mean, my ancestors do not come from anywhere in Western Europe, so I don't really have any inclination to pick sides, but apparently you do. So tell me, why are so many of you sensitive to any suggestion that life in the south of Europe isn't necessarily the ultimate?

[@letsbefreeletsbefree7183]

In the nordics we have both good economy and health 😎 But yeah i do like my vacation house in south of europe where i have cheap labor i can hire 😎

[@jabato9779]

​@@letsbefreeletsbefree7183Why Nordic countries have higher suicide rates then?

[@viboth2016]

I will add one thing which is the weather in my opinion. In north cold, rainy and wind so there is nothing to do except to study and work while in south the sun and beach push the person go out and hang out longer

[@vanbeet5105]

Absolute hogwash 😂😂

[@orthodox-mp6hv]

@@vanbeet5105 It's not, the siesta is a thing for a reason. Have you ever worked outdoors in a 40 degree heat. I have, let me tell you it isn't pleasant.

[@vanbeet5105]

@orthodox-mp6hv This weather hypothesis is purely ridiculous as the first civilisations of Europe were all from the south; was it colder back then? IMO, the most likely explanation is simply that the North embraced liberalism earlier than the South, which led to rights for a larger segment of the population as compared to the south The protestant reformation wasn't only limited to rejecting papal absolutism, people began questioning absolute authorities in their countries, leading to formation of constitutional monarchies and republics in the North, while the south remained in an almost slave like position to both their monarchies and Catholic Church authority until very recently. Spain was in a dictatorship till the late 70s, same with Portugal, which despite declaring a Republic in the early 20th century, was ruled by a dictator till the 70s. On the other hand, places like Russia have very cold weather, yet are way behind economically compared to western europe; this could be attributed to the fact that serfdom existed there till the 1860s. Point being, the differences between North and South can be attributed more to the pace of development of Liberal institutions, than to any other reason.

[@beerus1904]

that is bullcrap answer

[@chenlumin3684]

productivity experiences a decline of up to 4% for each degree increase beyond 27 degrees Celsius

[@stevev238]

It is interesting that Portugal has the most sunlight in Europe, and least hours of sleep- which is perhaps part of what contributes to their having the least productive workforce in Europe. Of course the reality is more complex.

[@vanbeet5105]

Any study to support this?

[@jabato9779]

​@@stevev238Southern Spain and Greece are sunnier.

[@alphalijahsworld9010]

Sounds like something a eugenicist would say

[@pollutingpenguin2146]

I’d like to see how Eastern Europe fits into this, as many of the former Soviet block are overdoing southern Europe in GDP per capita.

[@brunolima7402]

"many" ...not really "many" but those that are in central Europe.

[@vinhbao9738]

if you compare former Eastern block countries to Greece then 6 countries (Czechia, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia & Slovenia) have surpassed Greece. if Portugal gdp per capita is the parameter then 3 countries (Czechia, Estonia and Slovenia) have surpassed Portugal if Spain's gdp per capita is the goal then only 1 country Slovenia is close. if you compare former Eastern block countries to italy, none is close to italy gdp per capita.

[@dzonikg]

@@vinhbao9738 But if you compare south Italy ,it has 64% off GDP PPP per capita off EU awerage or same level as Bulgaria

[@JohanSimonsson]

True, look at Poland a very Catholic country with a really good economic growth since they ditched communism.

[@Hasanaljadid]

​@@vinhbao9738Slovakia is Not richer then Greece

[@oldskoolmusicnostalgia]

Northern Europe rich but: -broken family units, people living in isolation, very small households -greater prevalence of obesity, STIs and other lifestyle diseases -far bigger wealth inequalities than in Southern Europe I'll be glad to accept a lower GDP per capita for the lifestyle of southern Europe and fewer of the problems of northern Europe. $$$ is far from the only thing that matters.

[@sakmadik69420]

global south and eastern europe financial difference is more noticable than this😂

[@tomcurry3358]

Because the simulation wanted it to be

[@joseaguirre744]

🤖

[@yuriy5376]

The only correct answer in the comment section

[@selfReferencinDox]

It's climate change. If things continue, Russia will become a global hegemony

[@Parakeet-pk6dl]

I’d say it’s culture… I’m a Belgian and Belgium is a country that exists of two people: Flanders (with a generally Germanic mindset) and Wallonia (with a generally Romanic mindset). I’m working for a company that employs about 50-50 people from both regions and the difference between the amount and quality of work that a Flemish person delivers is vastly superior to the output of the Wallonian colleague. The company has no other choice then to accept that the productivity throughout the complete Walloon hierarchy is just much lower than throug the Flemish one.

[@c.f.okonta8815]

German> French

[@bipollarazralon1262]

I'm gonna spread this to your Wallonian collegues.

[@mikatu]

mate, I worked for a belgian company and it was a nightmare.... never seen something like that before. and they were from flanders.

[@ReneeChristopher]

​@@bipollarazralon1262😂😂🤣

[@Kaede-Sasaki]

Switzerland 🇨🇭 is more central Europe, not northern europe.

[@Chris-pq3wp]

It's mainly German speaking people

[@fabianauer1986]

It is about the plan. if you dive europe just in two switzerland is northern

[@mikatu]

Switzerland is 100% central europe. but when you consider that the geographical center of Europe is in Lithuania.... well, everything is relative. But CH is 100% the center and I don't know anyone who thinks it is northern europe.

[@aetherion7]

Any "central part" is always insignificant. For example the central region of Italy is also the Northern part, since if splitting the country in two that central part belongs to the northern. Sometimes Rome is mentioned as Central Italy, sometimes as just plain Northern Italy. Although, Switzerland is actually lying in the southern part of Europe if splitting Europe in two parts horizontal.

[@kukiponosanhrvat]

Actually the main difference between south and north is that north introduced liberalism and democracy long before south. If you look for example Republic of Dubrovnik, which was till Napoleon took control over it, one of the bastions of liberalism and democracy in the Europe you can notice that there were rich exemptions in the south also. Every rich country in the past and now is rich only because of its liberal economics. There is no exemption. You can have all the resources (Venezuela is the best example) and still be extremely poor if there is no free market, individual responsibility, rule of law and freedom of speech.

[@mikatu]

most countries with resources are poor. just look at Africa! Angola is one of the richest countries in terms of resources but it is one of the poorest countries in the world.

[@timginter146]

great idea to summarise key points at the end. really good video

[@nickycha8428]

Climate should be considered as well. Throughout history, beautiful weather does not make people work harder. The harsh climate of the North required more effort for survival. With that said, I would rather live on a beach rather than a northern latitude where the sun shines less bright and there is more winter than summer.

[@tjlisson2816]

There's nothing wrong with winter - it's Mother Nature. Put a jacket on. Besides, much of Southern Europe is too hot in the summer and it sure isn't going to get any better. The gap between the two regions

[@oldskoolmusicnostalgia]

@@tjlisson2816 Ah? And what about the people in northern Europe suffering depression because of low sunlight hours, that too is "Mother Nature"? Mankind wasn't made to thrive in dark climates, you need to read up a little bit on the importance of natural light instead of pontificating about "Mother Nature".

[@tjlisson2816]

@@oldskoolmusicnostalgia I live in a cold place and it doesn't bother me, seeing as how spring always comes. The people that don't get depressed go outside in the winter and get exercise. They're also wise to take vitamin D. You should know that studies show that world's happiest peoples often in live in the north of Europe - Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, etc. - while many of the most unhappiest live in the south. Yet another presumption and stereotype blown apart.

[@bicelisGeopolitics]

Great video, revealing and fresh! well done.

[@loicthierry7158]

Somehow, I also think geography should have a massive part of the explanation.

[@fturatti]

If that was the case, Rome would not have been the biggest european empire.

[@loicthierry7158]

@@fturatti Why?

[@richdobbs6595]

As far as world areas goes, Europe is pretty small. It seems like geography in the sense of trade routes was included here. Southern Europe should be better for agriculture because the important crops originated in warmer climes. OTOH, less larger growing regions amenable to mechanization.

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

Westerners: The Global South should stop mentioning colonialism for their poverty, which ended less than a century ago. Also Westerners: The poverty in the west is due to the bubonic plague, that occurred SEVEN centuries ago. Tbf most actual economists, even in the west, don't tend to discount colonialism. It's mainly the layman western public that does. Actual academics also do look at geography for explanations. The western public just looks to protect their own ego.

[@mikatu]

Of course, but geography is not the main here. The climate is the biggest problem. I mean, most countries have half-half between good and bad geographic conditions, but Spain has 90% of bad conditions. The country is mostly a desert. The climate has a huge impact on everything, from the fact that the north cannot rely on agriculture like the south does, to the fact that the south can be lazy most of the year since the living conditions are not as harsh as in the north. Even today the south can rely on the tourism almost the entire year, but a very poor tourism. Not the high level tourism that goes to Paris or London.

[@mcerovski]

We just kept farming instead of reading and starving to death

[@inky5746]

Switzerland is kind of southern central

[@brycesmueck8175]

Who’s writing the script? They are poor because of the plague hundreds of years ago.

[@bipollarazralon1262]

/giggle

[@tjlisson2816]

I’m glad you’re not writing the script because your assertion is nuts. The plague was indeed hundreds of years ago and was in both the north and south. Or maybe you just think you’re joking. If so, not funny,

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

@@tjlisson2816 That is literally FROM their script. You clearly didn't watch the video.

[@Mivoat]

I found this video surprisingly interesting. I never thought about it like that before, so food for thought thanks.

[@ionelcalinmicle6176]

To blame the plague for the current situation is nonsense 😅

[@justskip4595]

Switzerland being north is confusing for me here in Finland. Poland is quite south in Europe and they are north from Switzerland.

[@justskip4595]

Finland also doesn't fit into this interpretation. We were colonial subject till 1917 and suffered devastating wars after gaining independence. Holding off the Soviet take over was a massive boon for the economy, living standard and so much more though.

[@mjngp]

But the quality of life in those southern Europe looks attractive than the north , I've experienced Portugal and not the touristy parts i quietly enjoyed my vacation there its still my most memorable of most European countries

[@AMBIKAKemprai-rf6tl]

You got the point

[@withpikachu2402]

They basically have oil, gas, coal and iron. So the wealth shifted from South to North. South used to be very rich, while North was scrapping bread buns. For example UK, they had plenty of coal to burn and run mechanical looms on the industrial scale. Plus you specialize: you only produce cotton. That's it. No competition for that price and you take the whole market.

[@MVSSENJU]

Tho those points might contribute to it, i think the time scale is too big. The dominamt reasons must have to be more recent

[@JoaoSilva-le7rh]

Interesting analysis, but missed the critical aspect. Industrialization. Iberia made a crucial mistake because it outsourced it's production to the flanders region. The region consolidated into multiple clusters and when the industrialization era started, it completely left the south behind. Until today, south Europe is still catching up.

[@AdrianAJojko]

Nice try. But it's mainly culture, work ethic and the mindset. It only takes a couple of weeks spent in Greece to see clearly why the South is poorer and why it will stay poorer for many years to come.

[@HusseinDoha]

the whole video is based on false premise . He’s avoiding showing results and the fact that giants like Italy (7th or 8th largest economy in the world and Spain 10th or 11th without drop of oil or gas) are there is ruining his reality, so he talks about Greece and Portugal! WTF? He shows how many large companies are in a country (instead of the size of the economy). He shows income per capita which the differences weren’t minimal , (and compare between small countries in population but have oil, and large countries with large populations). All so he pontificates about theories and mediaeval time stuff!🧐

[@zoeskrivanou2505]

I invite you to farm at 45 degrees Celsius in south Greece at noon and do it 365 days out of a year. No 4 day work week. Everyday 12 hours a day work week. Every irrelevant person suddenly has opinions on work culture in a country the never worked at. Also Greece has the longest working days in all of Europe. I work 174 hours a month 6 days every week with a BSc and an Msc for 1100 euros. Come do my job with that kind of money, pay rent and bills and them come back to call us lazy.

[@武陵山下洞庭湖畔]

The highest GDP per capita in Europe is in the inland mountainous areas of Central Europe, Switzerland, Austria, and South Germany. The GDP per capita in Europe spreads out from this place and decreases. The spread is not uniform. The GDP per capita decreases greatly from the straight line of Iceland-UK-Netherlands-Switzerland-Austria-Croatia-Montenegro to the southwest and northeast. Then the decrease from Central Europe to the northwest and southeast is very small on this line. The GDP per capita of the Czech Republic is greater than that of Russia, Slovakia is greater than that of Greece, France is greater than that of Spain, Germany is greater than that of the UK, South Germany is greater than that of North Germany, North Italy is greater than that of South Italy, and South Sweden is greater than that of North Sweden. I expect that Northern Europe, especially Northeast Europe, will converge with Southwest Europe, but will still be slightly stronger than Southwest Europe, and the GDP per capita will only be about 10% higher. I think the reason why there is such a big difference between Northern Europe and Southern Europe now is that Northern Europe was intact and Southern Europe was destroyed due to World War II. I built a model to predict the relative degree of GDP per capita, using average temperature and precipitation. The difference between the average temperature of the coldest month and the average temperature of the hottest month is 15℃, and the best average temperature of the year is about 10℃; the difference between the average temperature of the coldest month and the average temperature of the hottest month is 25℃, and the best average temperature of the year is about 16℃ The best annual average temperature decreases by 0.6℃ when the temperature difference decreases by 1℃; the best annual average temperature increases by 0.6℃ when the temperature difference increases by 1℃ The best annual average precipitation is 1350. Decreasing or increasing GDP per capita will decrease (1.19*temperature difference)²+(1.8*precipitation difference [hundred])²=GDP per capita multiple² Copenhagen, Denmark 9-11.2=-2.2 1350-549=801 (1.19*2.2)^2+(1.8*8.01)^2=214.73 Reykjavik, Iceland 5-7.6=-2.6 1350-1017=333 (1.19*2.6)^2+(1.8*3.33)^2=45.5 Norway Oslo 8-13=-5 1350-884=466 (1.19*5)^2+(1.8*4.66)^2=105.76 Sweden Stockholm 8-13=-5 1350-478=872 (1.19*5)^2+(1.8*8.72)^2=281.77 Finland Helsinki 6-13.6=-7.6 1350-610=740 (1.19*7.6)^2+(1.8*7.4)^2=259.22 ---------------------- Baltic States Estonia Tallinn 7-13.6=-6.6 821-1350=-529 （1.19*6.6）^2+（1.8*5.29）^2=152.35 Lithuania Vilnius 7-14.8=-7.8 1350-748=602 （1.19*7.8）^2+（1.8*6.02）^2=203.57 Latvia Riga 7-13=-6 1350-594=756 （1.19*6）^2+（1.8*7.56）^2=236.16 ---------------------- Poland Warsaw 9-13.6=-4.6 1350-633=717 （1.19*4.6）^2+（1.8*7.17）^2=196.53 ---------------------- Central Europe Czech Republic Prague 9-13=-4 1350-550=800 （1.19*4）^2+（1.8*8）^2=230 Slovakia Bratislava 11-14.2=-3.2 1350-584=766 （1.19*3.2）^2+（1.8*7.66）^2=204.61 Hungary Budapest 11-14.2=-3.2 1350-680=670 (1.19*3.2)^2+(1.8*6.7)^2=159.94 ---------------------- Slovenia Ljubljana 12-13.6=-1.6 1350-1417=-67 (1.19*1.6)^2+(1.8*0.67)^2=5.08 Croatia Zagreb 12-13.6=-1.6 1350-896=454 (1.19*1.6)^2+(1.8*4.54)^2=70.41 Bosnia Sarajevo 11-13=-2 1350-954=396 (1.19*2)^2+(1.8*3.96)^2=56.47 Serbia Belgrade 14-14.2=-0.2 1350-706=644 (1.19*0.2)^2+(1.8*6.44)^2=134.43 Romania Bucharest 12-15.4=-3.4 1350-644=706 (1.19*3.4)^2+(1.8*7.06)^2=177.86 Southern Europe Italy Rome 16-11.8=4.2 1350-605=745 (1.19*4.2)^2+(1.8*7.45)^2=204.81 Spain Madrid 15-13=2 1350-408=942 (1.19*2)^2+(1.8*9.42)^2=293.17 Portugal Lisbon 17-8.2=8.8 1350-534=816 (1.19*8.8)^2+(1.8*8.16)^2=325.4 The smaller the value, the better

[@user-qx9bt9tr6t]

What do you mean by "so poor"? I am not European so I checked the standard economic indicators online. And for most of southern Europe, the incomes by PPP are high enough with low Gini indices and high HDI values as well close enough to that of the northern European nations, so I do not know what you are talking about.

[@bozimmerman]

"Programmers stay with the firms that pay the most." Hmm.. not all compensation is $$. Some of us stay with the companies that provide adequate $$ + compensation that no accountant would know how to ledger. Value is marginal, and Subjective.

[@Lotterboy]

My theory was always, that it's the climate. In roman times, the warmer climate of the south was a comparative advantage, as agriculture was the main source of GDP. In modern times, where being inside for longer periods of times promotes studying, experimenting and any other abstract work, that translates into today's high-performing ecocomic sectors, the colder climates have this competitive advantage. Even for Italy, this is true. Milan has a very crappy and often foggy winter. Time to sit inside and work on Ferrari engines.

[@col06007]

This video doesn’t explain why the same phenomenon exists in North America. The northern states are and have been on average much wealthier than the southern states. I suspect the main reason has to do with less reliance on agriculture and farming and a faster adoption of technology and industrialization.

[@Just_another_Euro_dude]

For DECADES now there's that phenomenon in USA of "moving south". Moving from the northern states to the southern states, mostly California and Florida. It's a one country so it was easier to happen than in Europe. But in Europe with the EU the same phenomenon is happening and maybe would become similar to the USA, if EU survives. It's slower in the EU cause we are talking about the different countries. But the tendency that people move where it's more sunny exists in the world ever since the 1950s. Primarily cause of more vitamin D, less depression, more colorful nature, more pleasure in life basically.

[@djbar0202]

Until the middle of the XIX centuary only London, Paris and Naples where bigger than Lisbon. The demise of Portugal and Spain starts at the Napoleonic wars. Countries whithout Coal and Iron ore had rough times in the XIX centuary, both in Northern and Southern Europe. Spain and Portugal had the 3th and 4th (both mercantile and war) european navies by 1800. They were unable to build steel sheaps in the following decades. The independance of Latin America whith the total hegemony of the British Navy pushed the portuguese (and dutch) trade out of the Indic and the Pacific Oceans. Portugal as a junior partner of the British felt particularly abused. After the Napoleonic wars, where Portugal suffered 200,000 deaths and utter destruction, France was alloud to keep all the looting done. We had to return rhe french Guiana, for instance, because the British sad so.

[@PyWPS]

With friends like Britain, who needs enemies 😂😂

[@lucaesposito6896]

So now Switzerland is Northern Europe uh!? 😂

[@dzonikg]

Its same in Serbia ,south is like different country compare to north ,much poorer. Also same was in Yugoslavia ,North which was Slovenia was multiply times more ritch then Macedonia which is on south

[@SunShine8308]

I've addressed it a bit on my channel over the years, I think, but it is quite nuanced. I do find Catholic-oriented countries to be more complicated and cumbersome getting a deal done quickly, so if you compound that over millions of transactions over centuries, it creates quite a gap. However, unless it has changed in the last few years, the total household assets in Italy are much higher than in Sweden and most northern countries, and this comes down to trust. The Swedes have trusted that a pension and other safety nets are going to be there, so they don't save that much, whereas the Italians may not trust institutions and have saved more... and they were a more centralized power and thus had a huge head start. In Eastern Europe, often people own multiple properties, debt-free... they may not have a huge value, but when you look at things in a tangible way, the east and south are richer than they might appear on paper.

[@TruckerPhill]

Very well said indeed…

[@stevev238]

Portugal is slowly developing, Lisbon is something of a magnet for internet start up companies- and although it is the poorest country in Western Europe, there is a square mile within Lisbon in the top ten richest in the entire world. So the division is not only between states or north to south but far more complex. The trouble is that it would take thousands of start ups to compensate for rural areas where entire streets- and even one whole town as I saw on another YT channel. Also Portugal has quite a large elderly population, that puts more demand on fewer available workers to pay taxes

[@NickSteffen]

I think a counterpoint to this, is that with most of these problems having been fixed in the last hundred years, the south should be experiencing catch up growth. But they’re not so while these reasons may have held back southern Europe in the past, what is holding them back now?

[@HusseinDoha]

the whole video is based on false premise . He’s avoiding showing results and the fact that giants like Italy (7th or 8th largest economy in the world and Spain 10th or 11th without drop of oil or gas) are there is ruining his reality, so he talks about Greece and Portugal! WTF? He shows how many large companies are in a country (instead of the size of the economy). He shows income per capita which the differences weren’t minimal , (and compare between small countries in population but have oil, and large countries with large populations). All so he pontificates about theories and mediaeval time stuff!🧐

[@loke1555]

laziness and early retirement

[@mikatu]

the whole video is just a lazy click and bait mess.

[@reporeport]

great vid!

[@HusseinDoha]

the whole video is based on false premise (for clickbaiting). He shows how many large companies are in a country (instead of the size of the economy). He shows income per capita which the differences weren’t small, (and compare between small countries in population but have oil, and large countries with large populations). All so he pontificates about theories and mediaeval time stuff!🧐

[@ivicaanic5213]

well actually south is rigth now powering up and growing much, much faster than anything in north so timing of the video is actually bad lol.

[@manjushagongale]

Now that much, because they also have an ageing population due to low birth rate.

[@ivicaanic5213]

@@manjushagongale well overall Europe has the same issue, north too

[@manjushagongale]

@@ivicaanic5213 Well Northern Europe does rely on immigration from Southern Europe and Eastern Europe as well as from other parts of the world, as there are much better job opportunities offering higher salaries. But the problem happens that it is destroying their native culture and language, as there are many who don't assimilate and the problem of illegal immigrants is an another issue.

[@ivicaanic5213]

@@manjushagongale wrong direction of discussion, as I said South is now growing MUCH more, it is leaving North way behind and differences are melting, main economic activity right now is in the South, those countries are getting right now much more rich compared to 10 years ago. Soouth is not what was used to be... that is the point.

[@TheGammelfjols]

And Mærsk is small in competition to Novo Nordisk.. in Denmark.... And I ditten even said Lego.... Dam 😂😂😂

[@HusseinDoha]

Your earlier comment was nonsensical. Dude Spain and Italy have a smaller welfare state than Nordic countries. The whole video is based on false premise . He’s avoiding showing results and the fact that giants like Italy (7th or 8th largest economy in the world and Spain 10th or 11th without drop of oil or gas) are there is ruining his reality, so he talks about Greece and Portugal! WTF? He shows how many large companies are in a country (instead of the size of the economy). He shows income per capita which the differences are minimal between the large countries, (and then mentions Portugal and compare it small countries in population but have oil (Norway), and large countries with large populations). All so he pontificates about theories and mediaeval time stuff!🧐. Did I mentioned that Spaniards have the longest life expectancy in the world, and Italians come close

[@ninoellison7793]

Totally fascinating and thought provoking. Thank you for the brilliant content!!

[@HusseinDoha]

the whole video is based on false premise (for clickbaiting). He shows how many large companies are in a country (instead of the size of the economy). He shows income per capita which the differences weren’t small, (and compare between small countries in population but have oil, and large countries with large populations). All so he pontificates about theories and mediaeval time stuff!🧐

[@mikatu]

Fascinating because the entire video is wrong.

[@cfpzona]

Funny, it seems the closer you get to the consistent warm weather, the poorer (lazier) people get. Same thing here in the Statea, the poorest people are in the deep South.

[@plmacleod]

Ay, that checks out. Explains all those Lambos and Bentleys cruising down the streets of Inverness whilst Londoners traverse the Thames in their (horse-drawn) Ladas.

[@islombekochi]

If you ask that question in 12 or 16th centuries you'd get very different answer.

[@quirkyMakes]

what happens when your brain gets too hot? Now what happens when your brain is cool.

[@rmot2911]

Singapore, Qatar, UAE, Saudi, Brunei, etc are within the Hottest Places in the World - High Income Nations (They are Amongst the World Leaders for Both Nominal and PPP Per Capita Incomes).

[@rmot2911]

Most of the Poorest Countries in the World which are in Africa Aren't in the Hottest Places in the World But are Commodity/Resource Curse Nations meaning They are Rich with Commodities but thanks to Corruption, Down. Take India too if you want, it has 1 of the World's Most Varied Climates Beaten Only by 5 Nations of China, USA, Australia, Brazil and Russia

[@Hasanaljadid]

​@@rmot2911All of them are Petro state except Singapore

[@Suavocado602]

​@@Hasanaljadideven Singapore. Not directly but they made their fortune being a convenient placement for oil tankers. No hate though, love Singapore.

[@Hasanaljadid]

@@Suavocado602Singapore economy is Not dependent on oil Shipping

[@albertteitsson9359]

Maybe it's because of coffee consumption.

[@ruicosta3855]

@visualeconomiken as a Portuguese please do a vid about possible ways to fix it ❤

[@micaeloliveira2727]

Terramoto de 1700 e sustentar guerras nas colônias levaram-nos à falência 😢😢😢lembraste de orgulhosamente sozinhos ??? Salazar

[@eugentanase3766]

As a Portuguese The fix comes from U

[@MVSSENJU]

​@@eugentanase3766thats what we all want to do, but how? Thats the question

[@mikatu]

este tipo não pesca nada disto. a solução é simples, mudar o país para um clima mais desagradável porque o calor reduz a produtividade.

[@AYVYN]

Monaco has a great shipping economy, and Slovenia is doing pretty well. Souther Balkans has a pollution and logistics problem which isn’t their fault.

[@nerdvision3587]

The cultures in the north also very noticeably make recreation out of productive activities, i.e. work of one kind or another (usually making stuff, e.g. carpentry or canning), while the cultures in the south instead prize goofing off, mainly by simply gathering with friends to chat or spending their time at eateries, rather than doing something productive. That reinforces a very different mentality that affects how they approach everything else about their lives, which affects both economics and politics there.

[@moreaudany9919]

water is an important thing, in north europe, they carry on to use canals and rivers, in the south with animals nowadays trucks

[@mikhailpetrovich8657]

The Whig interpretation of (economic) history is what essentially the video is promoting.

[@sandervr10]

Nice theory..... why there s a big economic gap between northern and southern Europe .... And maybe yes long ago.... WW2 was a great reset most northern countries where in ruins and still southern Europe was not able to close the gap .... Its a cultural thing ,the work ethics in North is higher because its cold ,rains , snows , freezing, in the winter so you need to work hard in the summer time to make sure your not putting hunger on the list as wel and is very different in the southern parts of Europe

[@BigDrawManTheGoloid]

That is so fucking true. Harsher environments with limited resources turn out to create tough pragmatic people who rely on each other to survive and where corruption is simply akin to shooting yourself in the foot while softer climates with abundant resources just make people lazy and selfish since there is no point in hard work or sharing... that, in turn, encourages high amounts of corruption.

[@gfyphg9871]

After World War II, the entire continent was devastated by World War II, not just North Europe. Spain didn’t participate but had a three-year Civil War. Italy was invaded three times and Greece was invaded by the Germans and then had a Civil War so what are you talking about?

[@iamscottish5826]

I dont think Southern Europe is poor especially Italy and Spain. They have a lot of big companies maybe not as many as the north but they have less countries. They are quiet more advanced in other areas. Also south of France also has most of the economic vibrant cities in France, Paris is the only city representing the north of France. Northern Italy, Madrid, Baqur country, Navarre and Catalonia are wealther than many places in the north of Europe.

[@christiansta2771]

This has to do with development. Northern areas had to development more due to climate needing more innovation to keep and store food.

[@lokesh303101]

North Europe invests in Itself. South Europe moves outside for Itself.

[@TheTomexification]

Portugal, was doing okay with the money from the spice trade from India and south Asia and the sugar trade from Brazil, then we lost our independence to Spain; Spain decided to sink most of our ships, that were part of the "great armada" (who do think the Spanish send into battle first?); our allies the British became enemies, also the Dutch because they were at war with Spain and now Portugal was part of Spain and we started to lose colonies, trade and influence. And in 1755 we had a major earthquake that destroyed most of the south of Portugal and even affected other parts of the country.

[@sihlemasondo2898]

U said it I the 1st sentence northern counties have more industry more production produce more and consume less the south has no mass produce that it sells to the world

[@HRC294]

Gucci, Vespa, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Zara, etc etc

[@rafavince]

Zara might leave Spain if they keep chasing "the rich". The amount of big corporations leaving Spain is not ringing bells for the left parties so let's see

[@beerus1904]

????? what is that supposed to mean

[@mikatu]

think for a moment mate, ferrari and lambo produce half a dozen cars per year, when compared with BMW, Mercedes, Renault, Peugeot, etc... Zara doesn't even produce in Spain, they are just a brand that buys their clothes in cheaper countries and Gucci is no longer Italian.

[@nosferatus777]

@@mikatu gucci produces in Italy. like the entire French haut couture supply chain, it is made in Italy. Northern Italy, together with Bavaria, is one of the richest places in Europe!

[@Banditxam4]

Southern European food tastes better...

[@c.f.okonta8815]

Italian food tastes amazing

[@kenpe1455]

Depends. Most if it is overrated

[@soundscape26]

That's a given.

[@christos1917]

Mediterranean cuisine is the best in the world with Greece as king!

[@c.f.okonta8815]

@@christos1917 no Italian is king. Have you had Alfredo fettuccine in a creamy sauce with chicken 🍗

[@Tier1Slacker]

I find it interesting that the US civil war was fought between the wealthy industrial north and the poor rural south.

[@Xx-he9qe]

Except UK.

[@Chris-pq3wp]

Uk has one of the highest net wealth per head much higher than Germany or france or Austria

[@nowisgodinyourlovelylife717]

​@@Chris-pq3wp15 years ago?

[@Chris-pq3wp]

@nowisgodinyourlovelylife717 2023 UBS global wealth report shows uk has higher net wealth per head than most European countries except Norway, benelux and Switzerland which are basically tiny irrelevant countries

[@MetoF50Narliev]

No immediate access to world's oceans and not many deep rivers for cheap transport to develop commerce.

[@nickdumlao314]

If southern Europe is considered poor to you. I wonder what you think of my country

[@goncalofigueiredo754]

Portugal had good intitutians before emgland and others but because of the gold the king became more powerfull.

[@radugabi5201]

The Bot that reads your headlines now is weird. I wonder how long until Josh will be replaced by a bot.

[@simongodfrey866]

It could also have something to do with establishment of masonic organisations in northern Europe.

[@FlamingBasketballClub]

Could it be governance? Nah! 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️

[@julienb.9526]

The Amsterdam Stock Exchange is not the oldest in the world. It was established in 1602, while the Antwerp Stock Exchange dates from 1460.

[@Just_another_Euro_dude]

Hmmm... Median wealth per adult citizen: - Germany = 66 735 dollars -Austria = 68 432 dollars - Portugal = 70 409 dollars -Italy = 107 315 dollars -Spain = 107 507 dollars. But please do tell me how the southern Europe is poorer than the north. It's fun. 😅 P. S. Germany, Switzerland, Austria, etc. are central Europe, just like for example northern Italy. Also there's PLENTY of big world famous brands from the southern Europe. For a long time the richest man of the ENTIRE Europe was the Spaniard owner of the Zara. And Zara is mighty famous brand, together with Berschka, Pull & Bear and other famous Spanish fashion brands, plus there's car brands Seat from Spain. Also from Italy, there's Versace, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Diadora, Kappa, Sergio Tacchini, Oviesse, Terranova, Napapijri, etc. talking about the fashion, and Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alpha Romeo, Fiat, etc. talking about supercars and cars. There's super cars these days even from Croatia like Nevera, and even Balkan countries got their own brands of HDTV and other tech. There's Tesla, FOX, VOX from Serbia, for HDTVs, smartphones etc, there's VIVAX, Quadro etc. from Croatia, there's Lobod from Montenegro. All those countries produce their own 4k HDTVs in HDR, smartphones, headphones, etc.

[@matiaserp]

9:36 wins it for me. This is massive.

[@raylopez99]

Not really, unless you believe in the heavy hand of history. That said, a study found that the Potosi region of Bolivia was poor back from the days of the Conquistadores until today, and blamed it on exploitative mining. A more physical reason might be Pb is often found with Ag, the main product of Potosi, and Pb causes re tar dation.

[@Trickaz94]

​@@raylopez99It is, religious institutions have always suppressed education And it shows today, you can blame the Catholic church for that

[@raylopez99]

@@Trickaz94 Civilization resulted in skeleton remains showing native Americans in better physical shape than settlers. Blame civilization for modern ills?

[@ArawnOfAnnwn]

Westerners: The Global South should stop mentioning colonialism for their poverty, which ended less than a century ago. Also Westerners: The poverty in the west is due to the bubonic plague, that occurred SEVEN centuries ago. Tbf most actual economists, even in the west, don't tend to discount colonialism. It's mainly the layman western public that does. Those education differences in the chart also date back over 250 years btw, yet apparently that counts.

[@Trickaz94]

@@ArawnOfAnnwn what you smoking? Can I have some too You do realize he is talking about southern Europe, not the global south right?

[@DrengrByHeart]

This gap is getting smaller and smaller

[@alphalijahsworld9010]

People mentioning weather weather weather 😂😂😂 tf does weather have to do with productivity Texas (despite being a state in a relatively modern country) is highly productive compared to other states in the same country but arguably a top five in high temperature average year round.

[@adamma9426]

Southern UK is richer than North

[@user-gr3uv7wy9f]

You speak the french Riviera is richer than the UK as a whole 😅. Wanna see their Maserati? I am from Italy and I feel like the UK skews its numbers. Sorry :/ Is it jealousy? Really? Think whatever you want 😅

[@TiagoRuivo]

South is poor, but it's still where everyone wants to go for fun.

[@Mosern1977]

Wine vs Beer. Beer just beats Wine for productivity.

[@xlukas93]

Because one has to brew bear, while to get wine all you need is to wait and do nothing 😁

[@rmot2911]

@@xlukas93 No one is brewing bears. But anyway, Gen Z, Gen Alpha, etc worldwide are less into alcoholic beverages. So, beer vs wine is of no use when Gen Z, Gen Alpha, etc are less into alcohol thanks to health effects like cancer and so on

[@Kaede-Sasaki]

@rmot2911 I brew bears 🐻 Very yummy 😋

[@fabricedecreau]

Bear vs vine. Vine strangles bear. Bear claws at vine. Hunter comes. Bear ties hunter with vine. Bear drinks hunter’s beer and wine. No more drink. Bear whines.

[@soundscape26]

Not drinking any alcohol is even better. 😂

[@morrillT-gd8hs]

The further north you go the colder it gets. It takes a lot of planning to survive the winters. Those with higher intelligence had more offspring therefore the average iq is higher in northern climes. Higher iq means more innovation resulting in greater wealth.

[@stratosferica42]

Sorry, putting together two totally different countries such Spain and Italy make the whole explanation a bit wobbly...

[@ge8705]

Now do East and West

[@wyswygsommer2769]

Its not only happened in Europe but rather the whole world. The northern countries are overall doing better than the southern countries. It comes basically to the climate that shapes the mentality of the people. The people from the northern hemisphere have to overcome the harsh climate, long cold winter since the ancient time. These evironmental challenges push the northern people more critical in any aspect such as think more critical, more punctual, more quality awareness, more sharp, etc. Because the nature doesnt provide abundance of food or opportunity to survive. In the ancient time if you miss the summer to harvest, you wont have anything to eat in the winter. The southern people in other side have abundance sun light all year long. They dont need to be sharp to survive. This habit shaped the mentality of the people. Although people all over the world can live comfortably nowdays , the critical mindset and habit of northern people are already in their DNA. It help them significantly to thrive and build prosperous countries. Human is basically lazy animal, but we also want to survive. Therefore we try to make improvement everyday and the biggest improvement comes only through hardship.

[@vinhbao9738]

it comes down to culture, how innovative we are as a people. Africans have genetics that allow them to run faster than Europeans because the slow Africans had already been devoured by predators. Humans are not lazy animals my friend, we are the smartest, fastest, strongest, healthiest humans that remain. its because we come up with weapons to defend ourselves and a good economic system that allows us to have abbundance of foodstuffs and not to worry about basic survival.

[@egg174]

The southern European slander tho

[@gilberttello08]

👌👌

[@jabato9779]

Civilization is Mediterranean. Besides material riches I don't see any superiority in terms of art, literature, history, social relations, even cousines, etc. But ok, we are "poorer" and don't care much. We have enough and enjoy life. Oh, and we live longer... and time is also valuable... and cannot be put in a bank account and saved.

[@user-zv9ce2sj5e]

Answer: Racism

[@TheGammelfjols]

Southern Europe had dictatorship states well into the 1970s, while democracy was deeply rooted in Northern Europe from the mid-1800s, with a German exception, but there is also a different mentality, we in Northern Europe do not expect the state to solve all our problems. in fact, we believe that associations and cooperatives are better than the state and the municipalities in the vast majority of cases. the main rule is that we do not have a minimum wage which is determined by law in Northern Europe versus the South where the state decides MUCH more, the culture is significantly different because we have this significant difference.

[@shanghaidiscovery2664]

I dont think southern Europeans expect the state to solve all their problems but it is just that the system for the last hundreds of years has been much more centralized. Catholicism is a much more centralized religion and the Napoleonic code which many of these countries adopted also is very centralized. the tax burden of this centralization does stifle a lot of growth. In fact the biggest impact is most likely not on large companies (because to Maersk I oppose CMA CGM, MSC, to VW, Ferrari, Renault, Stellantis etc, to Nestle well half of their brands are French or others, but anyway Danone etc). the main issue with centralization is lack of chance for smaller entrepreneurs

[@xtr.7662]

That really doesnt matter when northern europe was so much richer than the rest even in the 19th century

[@HusseinDoha]

Nonsense! Italy is 7th largest economy in the world without oil and Spain is 10th also without oil or gas (quality of life are amazing in these countries). You can compare them with Germany, but small Nordic countries are inapt comparison. Without oil what would Norway be? Where was democracy in Germany before 1948? The Kaiser in 1914 took the country to war and killed anyone who said no to him. Have a seat please.

[@carlomontecarlo7881]

I think it's the contrary - southern Europeans don't rely on the State (there aren't many services) while northern Europeans have stronger institutions that give investors a sense of stability, hence the stronger welfare schemes, the lower-than-avg work hours when compared to the OECD mean, the greater presence of part-time jobs. It's the whole "Quality of life/Livability" thing people in northern Europe love to boast about

[@bipollarazralon1262]

And also my gay rights are more respected in Northern Europe, so this can result in more development.

[@richdobbs6595]

The bubonic plague theory seems like a just-so story, and might be a bit of a broken window fallacy. To make a better theory, you would need to corellate impact versus future prosperity. But cities were hit harder than rural areas, yet ultimately cities lead to prosperity. How does killing off a lot of people lead to better institutions? Lots of areas that are really prosperous now where also dirt poor in the past. If you want an politically incorrect just-so story, might as well blame Islam. The direct impact of better institutions is probably well supported by evidence. What causes better institutions and keeps them is harder to pin down.

[@zurielsss]

He is saying the plague cause labour shortage and rise of lower classes, guilds and farmers got more power on the bargaining table. Centuries of rising middle class strip power from the monarch. Better institutions give a better economy. It’s a theory tho, not a rule

[@richdobbs6595]

@@zurielsss Yeah, I'd go with correlation isn't causation. After all there were places with high death tolls that didn't get a growing lower class.

[@Wanwan-mq3jw]

The average greek, italian, spanish.. Citizen owns more real estate, money.. then its counterpart in Germany. They do Not plunder their citizen. Northern Europe are rich countries with poor Citizen, the south has poor countries with rich citizen

[@2czablok]

Soviet block is poor. End of story. 🤦‍♀️

[@BStrapper]

Pueril version of Revised european history.

[@david69u]

The southern half is not populated by industrious Germanic tribes

[@tjlisson2816]

I'm not sure how industrious Germans necessarily are, either. In Berlin? You gotta be kidding.

[@carlomontecarlo7881]

Southern Europe is poor? That's news to me!

[@tjlisson2816]

Exactly. Compared to what? Bangladesh?

[@none2912]

because it's not, cope more

[@beerus1904]

This video is super wrong. I am italian, who works in logistics and manifactures in UK. The real reason stands behind the Italian economic structure. That many italian businesses rely on speculations, instead of productivity

[@HusseinDoha]

So poor? 😂define poor? The income per capita shown is not wide! And comparing Greece with no oil to Norway which has massive oil is inapt. I’m sorry, I can’t take this video seriously.

[@snackplissken8192]

Also consider that northern regions generally built cultures around scarcity of resources, which caused wealth to be more strongly tied to ingenuity and hard work to make new resources rather than just corralling existing resources. The "Curse of Natural Resources" puts the resources primarily in the hands of those who can take rather than those who can make, and taker economies are always weaker than maker economies, since economics is not a zero-sum game.

[@salimze2903]

I 100% agree

[@regulus6936]

"... northern regions generally built cultures around scarcity of resources, which caused wealth to be more strongly tied to INGENUITY and hard work." Go tell that to Norway. Man, tf areyou talking about? Since when North/South is synonym with distribution of resources? On top of that, you cannot make new resources, since they're given, you can only find new ways to exploit the existing ones. None of the countries in Southern Europe have natural resources... apart from sunlight, that fostered agriculture. Calvinism is one of (if not the main) the reasons why so much emphasis was put on hard work in northern regions.

[@bipollarazralon1262]

I think it all has to do with our gay rights! We were always more respected and had more of our rights in the North than in the South.

[@lizmorison5592]

South spends more time on the beach cos they can 🏝️

[@Jamal-Ahmed786]

Also eastern Europe as well is poor

[@ionelcalinmicle6176]

Spain and Portugal relied too much on gold and silver from America and didn't industrialized

[@HusseinDoha]

What does that had to do with today? 😮 the whole video is based on false premise . He’s avoiding showing results and the fact that giants like Italy (7th or 8th largest economy in the world and Spain 10th or 11th without drop of oil or gas) are there is ruining his reality, so he talks about Greece and Portugal! WTF?