<p>Yes there is. For example:</p>
<p><a href="https://books.google.nl/books/about/The_Wealth_of_Nations.html?id=hj2gCQAAQBAJ&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;source=kp_read_button&amp;redir_esc=y#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The Wealth of Nations: A Translation into Modern English by Industrial Systems Research</a></p>
<p>However, you should be warned that a lot of nuance gets lost in these modern translations.  That's why they are not used for serious scholarship done on Smith's work (I am not sure if you intend to read it for some serious study or just as a pastime). Although it gets main points across if you read WoN just for that you might as well get some abridged version or read some summary like <a href="https://www.adamsmith.org/the-wealth-of-nations" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this one</a>.</p>
<p>A good alternative to WoN rewritten in modern English are annotated versions of WoN where some modern economist makes annotations elaborating some of the points that might be archaic. The classic annotated version of WoN produced by Edwin Cannan (known as Edwin Cannan's definitive 1904 edition of Wealth of Nations), but you can find even more modern annotated versions.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-24T09:33:39.467Z
2021-07-26T18:16:10.903Z
2021-07-26T18:16:10.903Z
1muflon1
<p>Is there a New/Modern English Translation of Adam Smith &quot;Wealth of Nations&quot;? I cannot locate any online, it is a great read, just trying to understand it better.</p>
<p>The old/classical style of English is hard for me to understand. Looking for modern 1900+ lingo, for newer readers.</p>

<macroeconomics><reference-request>
Is there Modern Translation Book for Wealth of Nations?
mattsmith5
# Is there Modern Translation Book for Wealth of Nations?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-07-24)

Is there a New/Modern English Translation of Adam Smith "Wealth of Nations"? I cannot locate any online, it is a great read, just trying to understand it better.

The old/classical style of English is hard for me to understand. Looking for modern 1900+ lingo, for newer readers.

**Tags:** macroeconomics, reference-request

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-07-24. Score: 5 | Accepted answer

Yes there is. For example:

[The Wealth of Nations: A Translation into Modern English by Industrial Systems Research](https://books.google.nl/books/about/The_Wealth_of_Nations.html?id=hj2gCQAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false)

However, you should be warned that a lot of nuance gets lost in these modern translations. That's why they are not used for serious scholarship done on Smith's work (I am not sure if you intend to read it for some serious study or just as a pastime). Although it gets main points across if you read WoN just for that you might as well get some abridged version or read some summary like [this one](https://www.adamsmith.org/the-wealth-of-nations).

A good alternative to WoN rewritten in modern English are annotated versions of WoN where some modern economist makes annotations elaborating some of the points that might be archaic. The classic annotated version of WoN produced by Edwin Cannan (known as Edwin Cannan's definitive 1904 edition of Wealth of Nations), but you can find even more modern annotated versions.


---

