The US national debt has reached $40 trillion, while total global debt stands at about $350 trillion. Against this backdrop, New York Times columnist Paul Vigna has proposed recalling the ancient Sumerian practice where rulers could cancel accumulated debts with a single decree. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
'Amargi' — Ancient Mesopotamian Debt Forgiveness
The practice in question is 'amargi', which was used in Mesopotamia about 4,400 years ago. A ruler could declare a full debt cancellation, return land to farmers, and essentially restart economic life. The word 'amargi' translates as 'return to the mother' and over time became associated with freedom.
For ancient societies, this was not merely a display of royal generosity. Debts could accumulate to such an extent that farmers lost their land and ordinary people fell into debt slavery. Therefore, upon a change of power, rulers periodically carried out such a financial 'reset'.
Historical Resistance
However, the idea was not universally popular. The aristocracy in Athens resisted the reforms of Solon (an ancient Greek ruler and reformer), while the Spartan king Agis IV (ruler of Sparta) was executed after attempting to cancel debts. In Rome, the Gracchi brothers (politicians advocating reforms in favor of ordinary citizens) also faced fierce opposition to their reforms.
Lesson for Modern Economy
According to Vigna, ancient history demonstrates a fairly simple thing: money and credit are not laws of nature but rules created by people. Therefore, theoretically, people can change them if the old system begins to work against society itself.
Today, the US spends more than $1 trillion annually just on servicing its national debt. The author himself admits that a modern version of amargi is practically impossible, but suggests at least pondering how long the global economy can live with constantly growing debts.
Earlier, Kursiv reported that Kazakhstan's external debt grew faster than that of Russia and other EAEU countries.