Karl Rathgen

Karl Rathgen (December 6, 1856, in Weimar – November 4, 1921, in Hamburg) was a German economist.

From 1882 to 1890, he taught Public Law, Statistics and Administration Science at the Imperial University of Tokyo and was also an adviser to the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce.

From 1900 to 1903, he was temporarily in charge of Max Webers Chair at University of Heidelberg.

After its transformation into the University of Hamburg in 1919, he took over the chair of Economics, Colonial policy and Public finance and became at the same time its first Chancellor.

From 1913 to 1914, Rathgen taught as an Exchange Professor at Columbia University in New York.