Topology of Economic Systems

An economic topology can have many uses to the academician, student and practitioner. Refining a topology of economic systems helps bring together seemingly disparate characteristics and point out potential long run trends. The progression of economic systems over time and also brief explanations of each system are given. We argue that most modern economic systems have some remnants of earlier forms, that is, most economies today are some mixture of what might be considered pure systems. Measurable characteristics to identify a particular system are developed that allows progress to or from a particular classification to be charted for individual countries.