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The first occurrence of the word "management" in English reported by The Oxford English Dictionary is in the writing of John Florio, who in 1598, offered it as a translation of the Italian "maneggio ": "management, businesse, handling, negotiation." Thereafter the word's frequent appearance in the writings of prominent English authors suggests it quickly became established in the vocabulary and thoughts of English speaking people[1] . Medici family records attest the proliferation of business terms and concepts associated with the expanding of trade during the Italian Renaissance, but until the twentieth century English speaking business historians found it difficult to translate such primary source materials as these records ([7] Edler, 1934). In 1934, based on Medici family records, eventually housed in the Harvard Business School's Baker Library, Harvard issued a glossary to aid scholars in the translation of business terms current in Renaissance Florence[2] . Nevertheless most sixteenth century Italian-to-English dictionaries, with the notable exception of John Florio's The World of Wordes , either omitted the words related to complex industrial or technological practices or did not include them because such words were perceived to be obscure or had become obsolete.
Perhaps because of the linguistic obstacles, impeding English scholars' access to management's Italian origins - the word's occurrence in the work of prominent English writers notwithstanding - management history literature of our own era has directed little attention to the Italian Renaissance's impact and role in the word's introduction and establishment in English usage. The standard management history text ([21] Wren and Bedeian, 2009), discusses the Italian Renaissance, but does not pursue the Renaissance's role or that of John Florio in early occurrences of management in the English writing. To deepen understanding of this chapter in management history and to urge further pursuit of seminal terms and concepts underlying current management thought, we offer in this note a brief exploration of the spread of the Italian Renaissance influence to England and of John Florio's role in the introduction of management into English usage.
Historian Daniel Rodgers observes that important concepts in government and business often pass from one country to another through a process of "cross fertilization," which takes place over time through the movements and offices of highly connected, cosmopolitan individuals ([18]...