Wisdom Is Welcome Wherever It Comes From: War, Diffusion, and State Formation in Scandinavia
Eric Grynaviski|Sverrir Steinsson
Abstract Prominent theories of state formation hold that states formed because warfare and competition on the one hand, or diffusion organizational templates practices through learning emulation other. We propose two strands theory can be linked to more accurately account for mechanisms formation. War, we argue, is an important source social diffusion. War establishes contacts between political elites across borders, generates migratory flows, new economic networks. examine validity a comparative case study Nordic units from dawn Viking Age end High Middle Ages (CE 800–1300), finding raids, settlements, conquests by Norwegian Danish rulers in England, Europe's most advanced kingdom, set motion processes Norway Denmark. In these cases, winners emulated losers.
International Organization