Economic development and income distribution in Japan: an assessment of the Kuznets hypothesis

In this paper the author estimates the income distribution in pre-war Japan. For 1921-39, two sets of statistics were combined: national personal income tax data for high-income classes and household tax (one of the local taxes) data in 149 villages, 45 towns and 16 cities for low-income classes. For 1891-1921, a preliminary estimation was attempted based on 39 selected villages, towns and cities. From this estimation, we found a regressing income distribution for the pre-war period and a dramatic decrease in inequality between pre-war and post-war periods. The first finding supports the Kuznets hypothesis; the second does not. Rather, it suggests that the relatively equal distribution in contemporary Japan was not a natural consequence of economic growth but a result of institutional changes immediately after the Second World War.