White slavery

A Meccan merchant (right) and his Circassian slave. Entitled, "Vornehmer Kaufmann mit seinem cirkassischen Sklaven" [Distinguished merchant and his circassian slave] by Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje, c. 1888

White slavery (also white slave trade or white slave trafficking) refers to the slavery of Europeans, whether by non-Europeans (such as West Asians and North Africans), or by other Europeans (for example naval galley slaves or the Vikings' thralls). Slaves of European origin were present in ancient Rome and in the Islamic world, such as the Arab slave trade, the Barbary slave trade, the Black Sea slave trade and the Ottoman Empire.

Many different types of white people were enslaved. On the European continent under feudalism, there were various forms of status applying to people (such as serf, bordar, villein, vagabond, and slave) who were indentured or forced to labor without pay.

During the Arab slave trade, Europeans were among those traded by the Arabs.[1] The term Saqaliba (Arabic: صقالبة) was often used in medieval Arabic sources to refer specifically to Slavic slaves traded by the Arab traders, but it could also refer more broadly to Central, Southern, and Eastern Europeans who were also traded by the Arabs, as well as all European slaves in some Muslim regions like Spain including those abducted from raids on Christian kingdoms of Spain.[2][3] During the era of the Fatimid Caliphate (909–1171), the majority of slaves were Europeans taken along European beaches and during conflicts.[1] Similarly, the Ottoman slave trade that included European captives was often fueled by raids into European territories or were taken as children in the form of a blood tax from the families of citizens of conquered territories to serve the empire for a variety of functions.[4] In the mid-19th century, the term 'white slavery' was used to describe the Christian slaves that were sold into the Barbary slave trade.

The modern legal term applies more narrowly to sexual slavery, forced prostitution, and human trafficking, with less focus on the race of victims or perpetrators.

  1. ^ a b Akinbode, Ayomide (20 December 2021). "The Forgotten Arab Slave Trade of East Africa". The History Ville. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  2. ^ Mishin, Dmitrij (1998). The Saqaliba slaves in the Aghlabid state (PDF). Budapest: Central European University. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  3. ^ Historical Encyclopedia of World Slavery saqaliba&f=false The Historical Encyclopedia of World Slavery: A-K ; Vol. II, L-Z, by Junius P. Rodriguez
  4. ^ Shaw, Stanford (1976). History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey, Volume I. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-21280-4.

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