Adam Smith was a Scottish economist and philosopher, considered one of the greatest exponents of classical economics and philosophy of economics. He is best known for his work The Wealth of Nations (1776), which is a study about the process of creation and accumulation of wealth, issues already addressed by the mercantilists and physiocrats, but without the scientific nature of Smith's work. Because of that work, which was the first complete and systematic study on the subject, Smith is known as the father of modern economics. He was Honorary Rector of the University of Glasgow.