Before the 18th century, the subject matter of economics, such as the allocation of limited resources, existed as part of the larger body of philosophy, which studied political, moral and religious matters. The Greek philosopher Aristotle, for example, addressed economic matters within a broader context of political and ethical concerns. Until the 18th century, universities in Europe taught economics as a branch of moral philosophy.
The movement known as Mercantilism began to separate economics from moral philosophy. Mercantilists sought to increase their own wealth and that of their countries through the use of government policies to export goods and restrict imports. However, Mercantilism had little influence on economic thought.
In 1776, the Scottish philosopher Adam Smith published "The Wealth of Nations," one of the most influential works of economic thought and a key work in establishing economics as an independent field of study. A paper from the Independent Institute observed that Smith, a professor of moral philosophy, emphasized economic growth as essential for society, but retained economic thought within the larger framework of moral philosophy. "The Wealth of Nations" also attacked the Mercantilists' views, and advocated free trade and the division of labor within a society.
From Adam Smith's time well into the late 1800s, the field of economics was known as political economy. In the late 18th century, political economy emerged as an independent discipline, as societies and university posts dedicated to the field developed. Classical economists such as Thomas Robert Malthus and David Ricardo were among the first professional political economists. Ricardo and English philosopher John Stuart Mill both authored works titled "Principles of Political Economy." The Independent Institute paper pointed out that the scope of political economy narrowed as a result of professionalization of the discipline, eventually becoming economics.
Nineteenth century economist William Stanley Jevons is a key figure in the development of the modern study of economics. Jevons stressed the importance of statistical techniques in promoting economics as a science. Consequently, he preferred the terms economics or economic science to political economy. Alfred Marshall, a leading economist of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, supported Jevons' position on renaming the discipline, regarding economics as an independent science. Marshall's most important work was titled "Principles of Economics" rather than "Principles of Political Economy."
Since Marshall's work, economics grew and expanded as an independent discipline, branching out into numerous specialties and sub-fields, including microeconomics, macroeconomics, labor economics and international economics, among many others. Statistical techniques for analyzing economic phenomena became a separate specialty, known as econometrics. Contemporary undergraduate programs in economics instruct students in the principles of the discipline, introduce them to econometrics and other quantitative techniques of analysis, and enable students to concentrate in an area of interest.