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From Citizendium, the Citizens' Compendium

Entrepreneurship is the practice of starting new organizations, particularly new businesses, generally in response to identified opportunities. Entrepreneurship is often a difficult undertaking, as a majority of new businesses fail. Entrepreneurial activities are substantially different depending on the type of organization that is being started. Entrepreneurship ranges in scale from solo and sometimes part-time projects to major undertakings which create many job opportunities.

History

The word "entrepreneur" has been part of the French vocabulary since the 12th century and first appeared in the 1487 edition of Dicionnaire de la langue francaise. However, its meaning has varied through the centuries. The term was first used to describe someone who is "active and achieves something" and often denoted heroes from war.

From the 13th century onward, contractors, as opposed to the clergy, were engaged by the church to complete buildings such as churches and cathedrals. These contractors usually managed the financial risk themselves. As the state increased its influence and wealth through the 17th and 18th centuries, the concept of "risk-taking" was added to the meaning of "entrepreneur", in both legal and economic senses. The contractor or entrepreneur would be contracted to supply goods to the state at a fixed rate, therefore leaving the entrepreneur to assume the risk of making a profit or loss.

References

Landström, H. (2005) Pioneers in Entrepreneurship and Small Business Research, Springer, USA