Over the course of the past half millennium social, cultural, economic and demographic revolutions have changed the human experience beyond ”Nasty, brutish and short”. The factors behind these monumental changes are still mysterious, particularly at the micro-economic level. Neil’s research aims to generate answers for many of the burning questions regarding the origin of the Modern World.

Professor Cummins works at the intersection of ‘big data’ and economic history. Most of his research projects involve exploiting recently digitized historical genealogical data to answer questions about the origin of modern economic and demographic behavior. Recently, he has examined fertility decline in France and England, plague mortality in 17th century London and social mobility over the long run.