The Deep Historical Roots of Industrial Culture and Regional Entrepreneurship

Abstract We describe and compare the development trajectories of two German regions, South Saxony and Mecklenburg, with a special focus on entrepreneurship and innovation. South Saxony has a long history of self-employment and knowledge generation that results in a persistent culture of innovative entrepreneurship. Mecklenburg has a tradition in large-scale agriculture. The population density in the region is rather low. The knowledge infrastructure and entrepreneurial activity in the manufacturing sector is much less developed than in South Saxony. Differences between entrepreneurial ecosystems in the two regions are especially related to the level of knowledge production and its link to new business formation in innovative and knowledge-intensive industries. Contrasting the two regions reveals the long-term impact that history can have on entrepreneurship and innovation.