​Claude Diebolt is a CNRS Research Professor of Economics at the University of Strasbourg, France. His research focuses on the cliometrics of growth and economic cycles. He is the founder and the editor in chief of the journal Cliometrica. He is also the co-editor of the Handbook of Cliometrics and was the organizer of the 8th World Congress of Cliometrics. Claude Diebolt is the founding President of the French Cliometric Association, a former Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Cliometric Society, and a former President of the French Economic Association.Ralph Hippe is an expert in the Department for Learning and Employability at the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP), Thessaloniki, Greece. Prior, he was a scientific officer in the Human Capital and Employment Unit of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy and Seville, Spain. He also worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the London School of Economics on the development of the knowledge economy within a green growth framework. He was a consultant in a World Bank project, a visiting researcher at IDDRI/Sciences Po Paris, France and lecturer at Sciences Po Strasbourg, France and University of Tübingen, Germany. Hippe has (co-)authored more than 30 publications, including various articles in peer-reviewed journals.

• Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Regional human capital inequality in Europe.- Chapter 3. Spatial clustering of numeracy and literacy.- Chapter 4. Human capital and market access in the European regions.- Chapter 5. The long-run impact of human capital on innovation and economic growth in the regions of Europe.- Chapter 6. Lessons from human capital evolution over the last 200 years.- Chapter 7. Conclusion and future directions for research.

​Claude Diebolt is a CNRS Research Professor of Economics at the University of Strasbourg, France. His research focuses on the cliometrics of growth and economic cycles. He is the founder and the editor in chief of the journal Cliometrica. He is also the co-editor of the Handbook of Cliometrics and was the organizer of the 8th World Congress of Cliometrics. Claude Diebolt is the founding President of the French Cliometric Association, a former Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Cliometric Society, and a former President of the French Economic Association.Ralph Hippe is an expert in the Department for Learning and Employability at the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP), Thessaloniki, Greece. Prior, he was a scientific officer in the Human Capital and Employment Unit of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy and Seville, Spain. He also worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the London School of Economics on the development of the knowledge economy within a green growth framework. He was a consultant in a World Bank project, a visiting researcher at IDDRI/Sciences Po Paris, France and lecturer at Sciences Po Strasbourg, France and University of Tübingen, Germany. Hippe has (co-)authored more than 30 publications, including various articles in peer-reviewed journals.

• Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Regional human capital inequality in Europe.- Chapter 3. Spatial clustering of numeracy and literacy.- Chapter 4. Human capital and market access in the European regions.- Chapter 5. The long-run impact of human capital on innovation and economic growth in the regions of Europe.- Chapter 6. Lessons from human capital evolution over the last 200 years.- Chapter 7. Conclusion and future directions for research.

​Claude Diebolt is a CNRS Research Professor of Economics at the University of Strasbourg, France. His research focuses on the cliometrics of growth and economic cycles. He is the founder and the editor in chief of the journal Cliometrica. He is also the co-editor of the Handbook of Cliometrics and was the organizer of the 8th World Congress of Cliometrics. Claude Diebolt is the founding President of the French Cliometric Association, a former Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Cliometric Society, and a former President of the French Economic Association.Ralph Hippe is an expert in the Department for Learning and Employability at the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP), Thessaloniki, Greece. Prior, he was a scientific officer in the Human Capital and Employment Unit of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy and Seville, Spain. He also worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the London School of Economics on the development of the knowledge economy within a green growth framework. He was a consultant in a World Bank project, a visiting researcher at IDDRI/Sciences Po Paris, France and lecturer at Sciences Po Strasbourg, France and University of Tübingen, Germany. Hippe has (co-)authored more than 30 publications, including various articles in peer-reviewed journals.

• Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Regional human capital inequality in Europe.- Chapter 3. Spatial clustering of numeracy and literacy.- Chapter 4. Human capital and market access in the European regions.- Chapter 5. The long-run impact of human capital on innovation and economic growth in the regions of Europe.- Chapter 6. Lessons from human capital evolution over the last 200 years.- Chapter 7. Conclusion and future directions for research.