Economics, innovation and history: perspectives in honour of Nick von Tunzelmann

This introductory article raises a methodological challenge for scholars of technical change and innovation, on the one hand, and historians of technical change, on the other. We ask to what extent have economists and historians of technical change engaged in cross-fertilisation with regards to methods and the identification of relevant questions. We then provide an overview on the use and methods of history within the field of Economics of Technical Change and Innovation Studies (ETIS), which is traditionally considered as ‘history-friendly’. We locate the work and intellectual heritage of Nick von Tunzelmann among that of a small group of scholars in which history and economics of technical change have co-habited happily. We reflect on the variety of historical methods proposed by the contributors to this special issue, who were invited to respond to the above methodological challenge. Finally, we propose a way ahead in terms of the identification of relevant questions and pertinent methodological approaches.