George Kleiner1946—2026
Русский

Bibliography

Terms and their English forms

What the concepts he introduced are called in English, and on what grounds.

Georgy Kleiner coined terms, he did not merely use them. For some of them his own English wording exists, in papers published in English during his lifetime. For others no such wording exists and one has to be chosen.

This page records the choice and the grounds for it. It is meant less for us than for whoever translates his work after us, so that a term is not reinvented each time.

Rule

The distinction between “system”, “systems” and “systemic” is not stylistic — it makes three different claims. The rule adopted for this site:

systems X

when X is a discipline, an approach, a paradigm: systems economics, systems paradigm, systems thinking. The established adjective of systems science — the tradition he placed himself in: Bogdanov, Bertalanffy.

systemic X

when X is a property spanning the whole system: systemic balance, systemic problems. In English the word carries an overtone of disorder (systemic risk, systemic crisis), so it does not suit the name of a theory.

system X

only inside titles already published. Twenty-six of his works appeared with this form and have been cited as such — those are left alone.

системная экономическая теория→systems economic theory

adopted for this site

His own choice in Systems Research and Behavioral Science, the leading journal of systems science worldwide. Publishing there, he adopted that community's terminology.

Not used system economic theory, systemic economic theory
“system economic theory” is what Russian journals' copy-editing produces by default; in English it reads as non-native and ambiguous.

First so named The methodology of A. Bogdanov's tektology in the context of modern systems economic theory · Systems Research and Behavioral Science · 2023

системная экономика (дисциплина)→systems economics

adopted for this site

The name of the school and of the field. In 2013 he titled the programmatic paper “System Economics as a Platform for development of modern Economic Theory”; the form is brought into the plural by the rule above.

Not used system economy, systemic economics
“economy” is wrong here: this is the theory, not the thing theorised about.

First so named Системная экономика как платформа развития современной экономической теории · Вопросы экономики, № 6 · 2013

системная экономика (хозяйство)→systems economy

adopted for this site

When the subject is the economy itself, systemically organised, rather than the theory of it. He kept the two senses apart: in “Systems Economy, Justice Society, Effective Competition” the economy stands alongside society — as an object.

First so named Системная экономика, справедливое общество, эффективная конкуренция: императивы завтрашнего дня · 2024

системная сбалансированность→systemic balance

adopted for this site

Here “systemic” is right: it names a property spanning the whole system, not a discipline. The one case where the rule runs the other way.

Not used systems balance

In the published title “System Balance Index” the form is kept as printed.

First so named System Balance Index as an Indicator of the Russian Gas Industry's Sustainable Growth · Finance: Theory and Practice, т. 25, № 4 · 2021

экономика физических лиц→economy of individuals

adopted for this site

He corrected this himself. In 1997 it appeared as “economy of physical entities”, a direct calque of the legal term. But in English a physical entity is a material object, and an economist reads “an economy of material objects” — the opposite of the meaning. In 2017, in Voprosy Ekonomiki, he called the same thing “economy of individuals”.

Not used economy of physical entities, economy of natural persons
“economy of physical entities” is recorded as his 1997 wording but is not used for new translations.

First so named От «экономики физических лиц» к системной экономике · Вопросы экономики, № 8 · 2017

наноэкономика→nanoeconomics

adopted for this site

By analogy with mesoeconomics. The level of the individual person in his four-level scheme: nano — micro — meso — macro.

Not used nano-economics

интеллектуальная теория фирмы→intelligence-based theory of the firm

his own wording

His own wording, and an accurate one: “intellectual theory” would read as “a clever theory”, whereas the subject is intelligence as a factor in the firm's activity.

Not used intellectual theory of the firm

First so named Управление предприятием на основе интеллектуальной теории фирмы · Экономическое возрождение России, № 1 (71) · 2022

предприятие / фирма→enterprise / firm

adopted for this site

He kept them apart: the “theory of the firm” is a theoretical construct, the “economics of the enterprise” a going concern. Merging both into “company” is not admissible: the distinction carries meaning.

Not used company

отечественный (о России)→Russian

adopted for this site

“Domestic” in English means internal, and paired with “economy” reads as the domestic economy as against foreign trade — not the intended sense.

Not used domestic, national

пространство-время (социально-экономическое)→space-time

adopted for this site

The metaphor from physics is deliberate — hence his “parallels and meridians”, his “strata and routes”. The physics term should be kept, not flattened into “spatial and temporal”.

Not used spatial-temporal

First so named Параллели и меридианы экономики и общества (страты и трассы) · 2025