Slavery
Slavery is the ownership of a person as property.
Slavery is a system where one person is legally considered the property of another, typically for their labor. It is primarily an economic arrangement, rooted in economic history. Those held in bondage are forced to work, and their place of work and residence is controlled by the person who owns them. The act of forcing someone into this state is called enslavement, and the person is referred to as a slave or an enslaved person.
Throughout history, people have been enslaved for various reasons: as punishment for crimes, to pay off debts, after being captured in war, or simply to provide cheap labor. Sometimes, slavery was imposed based on characteristics like race or gender. Enslavement could last for a lifetime or for a set period, after which freedom might be granted. While slavery is almost always involuntary and involves coercion, there have been instances where individuals willingly entered bondage to settle a debt or escape poverty. For much of human history, slavery was a normal part of civilization, present in nearly every society. Today, slavery is illegal in most countries, though some states still permit state-sanctioned forced labor or slavery-like practices, and the exception for punishment is not universally applied or defined.
- field
- Economic history, social institution
- known_for
- Ownership of persons as property, chattel slavery, forced labour, debt bondage
- prevalence
- Common in most societies throughout history; now illegal in most countries, though state-sanctioned forced labor persists in some
Lore & Background
Slavery has existed in most societies throughout history, with two general types: domestic and productive. In chattel slavery, the slave is legally rendered the personal property of the slave owner. Chattel slavery was historically a widely accepted form of slavery in many parts of the world, including ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, Medieval Egypt, Sub-Saharan Africa, Brazil, the Antebellum United States, and parts of the Caribbean such as Cuba and Haiti. The Iroquois took captives in war, but these practices did not involve permanent property ownership; captives were often adopted into the community and granted full rights, making this distinct from chattel slavery. Beginning in the 18th century, abolitionist movements in Europe and the Americas sought to abolish slavery, encountering extreme resistance but eventually succeeding in many places. Legal chattel slavery was abolished at different times across the Arabian Peninsula—for example, in Saudi Arabia in 1962, the UAE in 1963, and Oman in 1970—and the last country to abolish slavery, Mauritania, did so in 1981, though legal mechanisms to prosecute those who used slaves were not implemented until 2007.
Reader's Guide
Slavery is a significant historical and economic phenomenon, having been a common feature of civilization across most societies. Its forms have ranged from chattel slavery, where slaves are legally personal property, to debt bondage and forced labour. The etymology of the word 'slave' is disputed, with one theory linking it to a Slavic tribe name and another to a Greek word meaning 'to strip the enemy'. Terminology regarding victims of slavery is also debated among historians, with some preferring 'enslaved person' to emphasize humanity and others using 'slave' for brevity or to reflect the inhumanity of the condition. Despite being outlawed in every country except as punishment for a crime, slavery remains prevalent in some form in all countries today. In 2019, approximately 40 million people, of whom 26% were children, were still enslaved worldwide. Modern slavery includes forced labour in factories and sweatshops, human trafficking in industrialized countries, and debt bondage, captive domestic servants, forced marriages, and child soldiers in non-industrialized countries. The legacy of slavery continues to shape economic and social structures globally.
Did You Know?
- In 2019, approximately 40 million people, of whom 26% were children, were still enslaved throughout the world despite slavery being illegal in most countries.
- The word 'slave' was borrowed into Middle English through Old French esclave, ultimately from Byzantine Greek, with disputed origins.
- Chattel slavery was historically a keystone of society in ancient Greece and the Roman Empire.
- The last country to abolish slavery, Mauritania, did so in 1981, but legal mechanisms to prosecute slaveholders were not implemented until 2007.
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