SLAVERY IN AFRICA Paul E, Lovejoy INTRODUCTION Slavery hasbeen known in Acs for along time, but how long is not known because of «Tack of documentation. However defined slavery has been important in the history of Aftica; indeed there have been major transformations inthe pl I economy of Affica over the past millennium that canbe ateibuted to slavery. The evidence sugges that slavery was indigenous, 1s was also the ease elsewhere in the world. The tade in enslaved people, moreover, was rmulifceted, Slavery affected social and politcal sretures fom erly times tothe present. This chapter will examine the nature of slavery, fom enslavement to tafickng and the impact of the extemal trade in slaves scros the Sahara, Indian Ocean and Alantic on Aftica. An examination ‘of the uses and abuses of enslaved individuals demonstrates tat the persistence of slavery is a factor in Aftican history." In addition, this chapter examines how pattems of slavery in fica hanged overtime. Slavery, no matter how otherwise defined, involved the pesibility thet individuals could ‘be bought and sold, with litle and usually no consultation with the enslaved. Should we be concemed about whether or not we can use the tem “slavery"? Ths philosophical question has challenged history and anthropology to define terms. The fat that people could be bought and sold affected the ideological context of society, which is important in understanding the relations ‘of dependence and exploitation tat are here defined a “slavery.” Slavery was ubigitous in both Arca and in the various parts of the world where Alfcans went, but the context varied and circumstances changed, often influenced by religious, sociological and political fuctors and ‘opportunity. Slavery involved the absolute power over another person, often resulting inpsychological suborination with intemittent expressions of resistance and aemps al escape. ‘Te relationships inevitably contained tensions tht helped to define slavery in each situation, ‘Language reflected the nature of this relationship, the word for “slave” being different in vstaly every language, attesting othe ubiguity and antiquity ofthe practic of shvery. We can translate “slave” into any language in Afea, suchas nkla (Tamashea), baw (Hausa), but also bella (Songhay), maccuBe and rimaaybe (Punt), ‘abd (Arabic) jam (Wolof), among others Sometimes, it has been argued, “slavery” didnot exist in AMfica but whatever we are talking abou is confused with other social relationships that are better described through the use ‘of local terminology, which varies widely according wo language and even dislet, a i argued by Joseph Inikori? Ir could be argued equally convincingly, however, thatthe great variety of terms for “slavery” indicates the antiquity ofthe institution, evolving wih each language and the people who spoke these languages, rather than borrowed fom other cates or imposed from outside. Indeed itis essen to distinguish slavery fom other forms of servitude, uch as human pewnship, some forms of marrage andthe status assigned to those fred fom slavery. Usually these social relationships of dominance and subordination were specifically contrasted ad were refered to through the use of diferent terms fom slavery. Hence the descendants of slaves who wee considered ie were called buzaye in Tamachek, the language of th Tuareg, 50 that former slave status was remembered although the people in question could not be bought or sold legally DEFINITIONS OF SLAVERY IN AFRICA Savery is a form of exploitation, whether in Affiea or etewhere, historically or in contemporary times, Is definition derives from the ida that slaves ar propery and that slaves are outsiders ho are aien by rin o who could be denied their heritage hough judicial or 2ther sanctions. With slaves, coercion could be used at will, and ther labor power was atthe complete dspossl of the master. They did not have the right wo their own sexuality an, by ‘extension, 10 thei ovm reproductive cupacitis and gender options. Enslaved women separated ‘rom their cildron and eunuchs are excmplos of this complete subordination. Th slave status ‘was inherited unless provision was made to ameliorate that status, Savery was fundamentally & means of denying outsiders the rights and privileges ofa particular society so that they could be ‘exploited for economic, politica, andor socal purposes ‘The classic debate over the definition of slavery inthe Alfican context has revolved around efforts to find suitable terminology to allow comparisons with slavery in other places. On ‘the one hand, Igor KopytofT and Suzanne Miers have artempced to define the practice of slavery in terms of what they have called “instinsions of marpinality,” in which individuals are perceived as more or less “belonging” toa society and the extent o which aculuration and legal ‘norms have allowed outsiders to be incorporated into the framework of society? On the other hand, Claude Meilassoux, among others, has emphasized the alienation of individuals whose subordination has been reduced to the same status a5 livestock, who can be bought, tld, exchanged as gifts, bequeathed or otherwise disposed of without the consent of the person in (question, and whose status was inherited* This emphasis on slaves as property is reflected inthe ‘wostem Sudan through the comparison of slaves with chickens It is often su in Sudan that ‘whoever owns te hen by right also owns the chickens that is, the children of slaves are also the property ofthe master ofthe slaves, and as suck have # monetary value.’ Whether the emphasis in defining “slavery” emphasizes the maryinality of socal and politcal statu or the property relationship, it is generally agreed that individuals who have been considered s slaves could not be fully incorporated as fully equal members of society. Among the Akan, for example, 3ratitineal rules of identity defined individuals according to ther kinship withthe families of ‘thoir mothers, so that cusiders could never achiove legitimate and recognized satus within society as fee people since ther tes with the kin oftheir own mothers, usally “outsiders” oF alien to Akan society had been severed. Thus, what was very important in African slavery was that slaves were people who, in important ways, did not “belong” within existing social Historically, slavery has to be viewed as « common theme in the history, not only of Alia but viually evryhers, always in historical context and never asa generalized and timeless concep applied diferent historia situations Tit spproach i etsentl in examining the history ofthe slavery in Afia and the dispersal of enslaved Afticans within Aca as well 1510 the Mediterranean va the Sahara, to Asia by caravans or across the Indian Ocean, and to the Americas and the “Middle Passge” of the Alani. The enslavement of people was Intimately acocistd with the trade in slaves. Aca “produced” slaves, taded thom and consumed is own people. The aademie discussion ofthis theme i history has now become = major area of research that transends older scholarship that ignored the sae or treated slavery ‘8 an anachronism oe was dsmibsed by a colonial perspective that considered “Africa slavery” benign. Moreover, scholar have been encouraged to treat Alcan slavery within wider contexts. wis now widely recognized for example, that to study slavery in Afric is away of showing hat, Afican history is not only the history of the continent bu also ofthe regions where enslaved -Asfcans were taken, [As the debate over the meaning of “slavery” demonstrates, usally outsiders have been percsved as enially diffrent from insiders A person who spoke the same language a his maser, without an accent, who shred the same culture, believed in the same religion, and 4‘understood the politcal relationships that determined how power was exercised was far more ‘ifcult to contro than an outsider and was unlikely to become enslaved. When differences in culture or dialect were relatively unimportant, the level of exploitation and the socal iccaton of ‘slaves were usually limited; such situations suggest that slave holdings were small snd that politcal and economic stratification was minimal. There are many such examples fiom societies that were decentralized and not part o state, such a slong pars of the upper Guinea coast i the feenth and sixteenth centuries, or aess of central and easter Aftes that were relatively iaolate from trading networks end international markets, even alte asthe nineteenth century” ‘The most developed forms of slavery, nevertheless, were those where enslaved individusls were ‘removed a considerable distances fom their birthplace, thereby emphasizing their alien origin “This uprooting was as dramatic within Africa as was the transport of African across the Atlantic ‘or the Sahara Desert ora tragic asthe seizure of people who lived only a hundred kilometres or less from the home of the ensavers. Boh situations helped to define the slave as an outsider, ‘east in fist instance, Overtime, cultural distinctions tended 1 bur, 0 that the extent to which ‘lien origin was a factor varied, which is why terminology also was different. Those who had ‘been enslaved in ther own lifetime were distinguished from those who were “bom in the house,” i.e, who had heen bom into slavery. Among the Hausa, for example, cucanawa refered wo the children of slaves, who were nonetheless also bawa (slaves), and could be bought and sold just 1s their parents could be, In Afiice, the status of individuals under slavery influenced what was meant by ethnicity, Which must be understood asa dynamic model of social and individual identity formation and not as an essentialist, timeless concept of belonging or not belonging to 2 group. Ethnicity involved ascription by self and others), conscription (through immigration and slavery), and 5removal (trough sale, kidnepping, slave raiding). An historical consideration of slavery in Afica help to explain the emergence of and persistence of ethnicity, the influence of religion in sustaining social relationships based on coercion, andthe dichotomy between external influences ‘of market demand for human labor and internal polities of controlling people and land. In most parts of West Alfica, but to a much losser extent elsewhere, practices of body and facil scrification were used as a means of identifying ethnicity, social status, and sometimes ‘cceupational specialization, which also had the effect of distinguishing between slave and free and protesting those with specific markings from enslavement. Facil and body markings among, the Yoruba, for example, indicated which state or province person was associated with, while among the Igbo of southeastem Nigeria, the ici scarifiaton on a man's forehead indicated that be was a fee person and part of the village or town coun, nd therefore was not legally subject to the possibilty of enslavement* METHODS OF ENSLAVEMENT IN AFRICA Historically, warfare, mitary mids, and kidnapping were the most common means of enslavement in Africa. In each of these situations, enslavement involved violence, in which people were killed or wounded, and in which moveable property such as livestock, food and cther goods were seized as wel. The vilence underlying enslavement needs to be emphasized. ‘As Orlando Patterson has engued, enslavement in effet was a form of “social death” that severed individuals fom their natal societies, eliminated ties with kin, and removed people against their will fom ther homelands, even resulting inthe destruction of their villages and farms? Whether 15 a form of punishment or as a means of sequiting captives for purposes of sale and exploitation, slavery was integrated into the politcal economy and social structures of AfticanTia eter dating fom 1391-92, for example, the goverment of Bomo, an early kingdom located in preszat-day Nigeria and Chad, protested that Arab raiders were seizing its free subjocts and taking them 6s slaves North Africa. According to Uthman ibn Ids the hing of ‘Boro, nomad warriors were raiding across the Sahara forthe purpose of enslavng poole ‘These Arabs have pillaged our land, the land of Born and continue doing so. They have taken as slaves free men and our fathers, the Muslims, and they are selling them to the slave dealers of Eeyp, Syria, and elsewhere, and keep some for themselves.” [As this account demonstrates, there was no real division between Affca north and south ofthe ‘Sahara, but ther there was continuity aeross tbe desert in tems of slavery and enslavement. In the speific context ofthis case, Borno was issuing complaints as a Muslim state apsinst another ‘Muslin state. The Muslim regions of sub-Saharan Alice were closely intertwined with the ‘Muslim world of North Aftica and the Middle Eas, which has remained the case until the present. Ths ascount chronicles raids across the Sahara, but slavery and raging was well ‘established south of Boro, The reference, rather, shows that sub-Ssharan Africa was not soted or distant. Moreover, lest it be thought tht these trans-Saharan excursions for slaves were only 1 invasion, it should also be pointed out that documents ftom Bomo also chronicle the enslavement of people by the Bomo state for itt own purposes, including the stle of slaves across the Sahara Even though forms of slavery existed in Affica before the maritime arrival of Europeans and long before the emergence of the American slave systems, the European demand for African slaves had a transforming impact on Affican societies. The imposition of a slavery system cially defined changed Aficans' understanding of slavery. According to Wiliam Snelgrave, slave trader onthe coast ofthe Bight of Benin inthe 1720s, It has baen the Custom among the 7[Negroes time out of Mind, end it is ot this ay, for them to make Slaves of el Captives they take in Wer...) employ in her own Plantations.” Now, Snelgrave noted Africans “hd an Opporanity of eling them 1 white People" Snlgrave understood tat the demand for slaves in the Americas transformed a local method of labor exploitation ito an intercontinental sytem that was now based on racial categories. In aditon, people were enslaved for judicial resons, ‘enslavement being considered & form of punishment, Moreover, many children were also born int slavery. Inthe sntenth century, Jen pict Baltasar Basics Iarod that slaves were not ‘only taken in war bat poople were enslaved for what were perssved te criminal offences “There are other ways of enslaving in a legal way, as when tis proved that one bck is a witch, or ihe confesses it himself or that ha Killed anther with poison; or tat he is nv with any ofthe king's wives or that he i ineiting wae agains he king; or that be ass for “cin 0 they call hee idols wo kill the king, in which case ifthe king happens to fll, not only do they Kil the delinquent or sell him outside the kingdom, and confiscate all his possessions, but they also enslave and sell his olatives, for fear ‘hat any of ther, in revenge aio sks the “hina il him." ‘This report alo refers to cllestive punishment fractions and suspicions tht were considered ‘egal and threstening to the established politcal order, Enforcement inevitably required Violence or the threat of violence, According othe report of Francis Moore, who was a slave trader in Senegambia i the 1730s, Since the Slave Trade has been us'd I Punishments are changed into Slavery; there ‘being an advantage on such condemnation, the stain for Crimes very hard, in order to et the Benefit of selling the Criminals. Not only Murder, Theft and Adultery arePunished by selling the Criminal for Slave, but every wing ease i punished in the same References o “rifling cases indicates that European, hats, foreigner observers, were oflen not sttuned wo the reasons behind punishment and had litle understanding about the nature of alleged crimes. Despite such reservations about the jusifcation for enslavement, the fact remains that individuals were being enslaved, and this included delinquent members of society. SLAVERY AND LABOUR “The central feature of slavery was the virtual lnk of choice onthe part of slaves. Their tot! subordination tothe whims oftheir master meant tha slaves could be asigned any task in the society or exanomy, Slavery was fundamentally ied to labor. It was not the only form of forced Isbor, but slaves could be made to perform any task inthe economy. They had todo what they were told; hence they often performed the most menil and laborious asks and sometimes undertok prea sks Inthe Kingdom of Kongo in the late sixteenth century, for example twas reported thet free people did not “cukivate the ground” but rather ‘only slaves Ibour and serve. Men who ae powerful ave a great number of slaves whom they have captured in war or whom they have purchased. They [eve] conduct business through these slaves by sending them to markets where they buy and sll econding othe master’s onde." ‘As this account makes clear, slaves not only performed agricultural tasks but slao ted on behalf oftheir owner, if individual slaves had been assimileted into local sosiety and could be trusted. Similarly nthe hinterland of Siena Leone, as observed inthe 18608, people were taken in war s slaves, “whome only they kept til he ground." In the case of slaves, the concept ‘of labor was not perceived as separate fom the slave asa person. The slave was an instrument ’through which work could be accomplished, and coercion could be used 10 force compliance wit paula onder. The slave was told what odo and, ihe she did not doit, he or she was punished, often sovery. ‘Masters contlled not only the productive capacities of slaves but also regulated their sexual and reproductive capabilites. When slaves constituted a significant proportion of the Population, then sexual access and reproduction were strongly controlled. Wome (end men too) wore treated as sual objects; the ability to many was closely administered, and males could be castrated, The significance of sex is most sikingly revesed inthe market pie of slaves. unuchs were ofien the most costly, with prety women and gins close behind, ther price depending upon their sexual atasiveness, These two opposites ofan engendered perpective— castrated males and atactve females ~ demonstrate most clearly the masters power over sexu snd reproductive functions" Slaves implicitly lacked the right to engage in sexual relationships ‘without the consent of their master. Their children, once slaves were given the opportunity 16 have childron, wore not legally her ffprng but the propery oftheir master. Biologically, they ‘were the offiping of slave parents, but he righ to ras the children could be denied Instead slave children could he taken away, and even when they were not sold, they could be reditibutd as part of marriage arrangements, rained for the amy’or administration, taken a concubines Moreover, the power of masters over slaves extended tothe right of ie and death. Jn many places, such as among the Igbo, slaves could be stefced at funerals of importa individuals 8 sgn of woah and as one frm of offering o gods. While im some cates, slaves ‘ofthe house might be sstifce, often individual slaves were bought specifically forthe purpose of sacrifice. Where such practices were common, as among the Ibo. individual slaves might 10‘well fear being sold because the sale might lead to their death. Similarly, among the Yorube, slaves could be sacrificed at religious ceremonies and annual festivals, The most well knovm public executions of slaves oocurred in Dahomey, where hundreds of captives were killed at anual festivals.” ‘Those bor ito slavery found themselves in a different poston from those wih had been cnslaved in their own lifetimes, as the inital act of violence became an abstraction. Patents sight tel their children of their enslavement, but this was not the children's experience, Children ould also Team shout enslavement from new captives. The threat of violence within African enslavement practices was als present, Leplly, slaves could be separate from their parents and sold, even if in practice such separations were rae. Violence was sill a erucial dimension of social conto. People sho had been enslaved could not necessarily expect that their children ‘would be incorporated fully into local society or otherwise expect emancipation because the ‘vest of re-enslavement in war and through raids on rural communities could result ia their transfer to distant lands, i ther death along the way. For various reasons, slaves tended not to sustain their numbers naturally, and slave populations usually ha tobe replenished. One reason for this situation was the relatively short life span for many slaves. Death could result fiom particularly harsh work, while funeral sriices and unsuecessfl cat ‘operations tok their tll. Travel conditions for slaves estned for distant markets were alo a factor, both because individuals were moved from one disease environment to another, thus increasing morality rats, and because rations were often Inadequate. Another reason was the demographic imbalance between the sexes in slave populations. The situation for populations with an excess numberof males led to general decline {in total population, nt just slaves, unless more slaves were imported. When slave women were nAistibuted unevenly, the general population did not necessarily deckine, only the proportion of slaves in the population. Free men usually took the women as wives or concubines, so that they still bore children, Because the status of concubines and slave wives changed, often leading to ssimilation or full emancipation, the size ofthe slave population decreased accordingly. The children of slave wives and concubines by fice fathers were often granted a status that was completely o almost free. Under Islamic law, this was most pronounced. Concubines could not be sold once they gave birth, and they became ffee on the death oftheir master. The children of such unions were fre on birth, These features of gradel assimilation or complete emancipation ‘contract that aspect of slavery, which emphasized inherited stats, but was compatible with the ‘master's power to manipulate sexual and reproductive functions for his own purpose. SLAVERY AS BUT ONE FORM OF LABOUR As indicated above, slavery in Africa shouldbe distinguished from other forms of servile labor and from other patterns of organizing work. There were cases in which people were tied to te land, such as in Christian Ethiopia before the twentieth century, and hence were analogous to serfs in Europe, where obligations were fixed by custom, Elsewhere, however, such relationships were rare or non-existent. Pattems of raiding and warfare usually meant that people were enslaved and sometimes even re-enslaved so tht “feudal” type arrangements could not develop. “Moreover, there were forms of elontage, in which individuals volumtaiy attached themselves to politicl and military cites that involved services without fixed remuneration, Such was often the «ase of people of slave descent, a in most Muslim areas and in epions plagued by warfare, as was true among the Yoruba inthe nineteenth century. People did work for wages, suchas porters ‘who carried goods along trade routes or between the countryside and towns, but in many casesthese people were infact slaves who were being allowed to work on their own account, subject to payment of fixed fees to their masters. Pwnship was also widely practiced, in which individuals were held as collateral for ets contacted by their elaves, Pawns were expected o reside withthe cers, and ther labour was atthe dsposl of the eritor a a frm of interest on the debt. In these case, labour ‘was redistributed within societies asa means of securing ret and therefore was closely ted to ‘nade and marketing. Individuals could not be redeemed until the orginal debt was fly paid, ‘which mean that pawning arrangements might be inherited or might become part of marrage cones. In these contracts, pawned gels might mary within the household ofthe creditor asa ‘means of liquidating. debt, the whole process being conceived of asa substitute for mariage payments, Pawnship was found widely in west and central Aftc." In some places, such a a (Old Calabar and in the trade castes onthe Gold Coast, European merchants acepte pawns as ‘way of guaranteing that slaves and various commodities would be delivered when imported goods had been extended on ect to resident Affican merchants” In these cases, however, the tems of repayment usually involved tim limit on the contact that was based on the date of departure of ships, Local proctices were not normally subject 0 specific time restrictions. It should be noted that not only people could be pawn, but also gol, other valuables, ae uit bearing tes, important o note that labour was organized on the basis of fan , communal work ports, mariage contracts, and other arangement. These forms of organization could involve ‘version or more sulle forms of pressure. Finacial and labour obligations associated with mariage conte fen involved arrangements in which future husbands worked for the family ‘ofthe bride. Men or ther kin might be required to make payments othe bride’ Family, which 13as often been described as “bride price," 1 reflect the financial dimensions of such contacts, “These arangemens were usally intended wo cement relations between kin groups and therefore belp to secure the longevity of the mariage. However, whether or not slaves, pans and clients wore involved in these rangement fected the nature of maviage snd introduced othe factors, of labour mobilization and cont into the equation. These various foms of cial and esonomic structures demonstrate that slavery was widely recognized as one type of relationship among ‘many kinds of eltionship thet existed in west and central Afi ISLAMIC SLAVERY “There was an import dsincton in bow slavery was established and in how slaves wore treated between Islamic areas nd reas wher alr was not important ono even present Within an Islamic context, slavery was governed by reference to legal and religious traditions Which were codified either by reference othe Qu'ran, ori hath, and legal schools, especially "Mali twas also reflected in legal opinions and commentary, including those of a-Maghili and [Almmad Baba Hence we need to look for similarities and diferenes from other parts ofthe Muslim world. The inlueace of the Sharifian dynasty in Moroeco and the Otoman Porte n sub- Ssharan politics should be stessed, Through pilgrimage and literacy, Muslim scholars were ‘enned in Islami law, which began Srom an early dt in West Africa, Far from being isolated from the ret of the Islamic world, Musims south of he Sabir were in close contact. Hence the literary ad egal tradition was extended acl expanded though the nineteenth century. Techical, and legal problems were resolved through the issue of anv, o eal opinion, [Ahmad Babe (1556-1627), basing his interpretation oneal scholarly opinions, wrote in 1614 in his Mra Sw’ ile Nap Hom Maju al-Sud thatthe reason for slavery is non-belif [in Islam] and the Sudanese non-believers are lke oe kar whether they are Cvistians, Jews, Persians, Berbers, or any others who stick to non-belef and do not embrace Islam... This means there is no difference between a the Kafr inthis espect. Whoever is captured in a condition of non-blit, its legal to ‘own him, whosoever, he maybe, bt not if he was converted to Islam voluntarily" ‘Specifically, as most notably argued in his famous treats, a weatise which was widely cited as authoritative in subsequent Islamic texts in West Attica, the had leadership opposed the sale of enslaved people to non Muslims as being legal. Ahmad Babs argued that some people who ‘were not Muslims ~and he idemified a number of ethnic groups, ncladng the Yoruba, whom he called by that name ~ could be enslaved. Is instructive thatthe term Yoruba is a Muslim ‘designation that was subsequently adopted as « common name only in the late nineteenth ‘century. By contrast, he stated that poople who had long been Muslim ~ specifically Hause, Songhay, Mandingo, Soninke, Wolof and others ~ should never be enslaved. Later generations found it dificult abide bythe legal farsa of Ahmad Baba, but even if ignored in practice these {fara were well known in Muslim areas of Alice, According to Abmed Babs, therelore, [Muslims were morally snd legally prohibited from sling people to non-Muslims, an especially to Christians ‘The discourse surounding slavery in Muslim regions indicates that the subject was Widely discussed in Alfica long before the abolition debate in Britain and elsewhere in the [European world. It is instructive thatthe problem of “legal” and “legal” enslavement pervaded ‘many parts of Affica. Inthe Kingdom of Kongo, tothe south ofthe Congo River, and in places slong the Angola coat, some individuals claimed that they had been “wrongly” enslaved, such a inthe case of Nhens,# woman seized from Luanda inthe eighteenth century.” Similarly, 1s‘wo merchants at Old Calaber were seized and taken to Barbodos in 1767, eventhough they were not slaves, encouraging them 10 use evidence about their previous stats in onder to prove that their enslavement was wrong. By doing tis, they subsequently secured their release and ‘returned to Old Calabar. Other cass, too, demonstrate that slavery was a contentious issue ‘whose legitimacy was contested in Africa, as well as eleewhere, ‘THE TRADE IN SLAVES ‘The tae in slaves within Affica was an aspect of commerce in general. Indeed when individuals were bought and sold in Alica, there were always many commodities also ‘exchanged, Hence the slave trade was part of economic lif, involving the use of money, the provision of credit, and the fixing of prices for exchange In the context of ican history, the imerrelationship of intemal forms of slavery and servilty with the export trade in slaves is an ‘important consideration and indood a topic of debate among scholars. The transatlantic and tras ‘Saharan slave wades removed millions of enslaved Alticans from their homelands, This could ‘ot have happened unless slaves were being bought and sold, The relative impact of extemal ‘rade in slaves on intemal developments within Aftca varied with proximity tothe Saar, the Indian Osean, and afer the late fifteenth century, slong the Atlantic coast. There were wide ranging networks that were dominated by Muslim merchants, along the East Affican coast and fom the Red Sea to the Atlantic shores ofthe upper Guinea coast, and from these areas far nto the interior, While some ofthese merchants came from North Afric the Middle East and India ‘here were also many merchans who were resident in sub-Saharan A\ica and in Bast Aftca and who dominsted the trade in slaves well before the opening of trans-Atlantic commerce.* “Moreover, rade in slaves was also found in areas beyond Muslim influence, precisely because enslaved individuals hed to be moved some distance from aress and peoples whom they knew 6and to which they might atempt to escape. Slavery was based on control and the thet of repeated violence and coeson, which could best be effected through removal via commerce. “Most estimates ofthe numbers of enslaved Alficans who were shipped tothe Americas ter the early sistent century through the nineteenth century range inthe onler of twelve rillion people. The numbers of people sot a sliver sross the Sahara Desert, the Re Sea, and the Indian Oscan have boea mor dfclt 6 establish, bu he sae of his trade was historically ‘ery lage aswel. As eflectedin Table 1, rough estimates ofthe scale ofthis slave trade suggest that sbout 175 milion people were fribly removed fom Arica between 1500 and 19C0, of ‘which more than 70 percent wen tothe Americas and he rest to the Muslim regions of North Aca, the Middle East and the Indian Osean world. These estimates do not include the number of slaves sen ito the Muslim worl before 1500, which was considerable, o indeed fier 1900. [Nonetheless one fetus of slavery in Aca andthe lationship ofthe export trade in slaves is lear. Until very recent times, Aca suffered fom a demographic dein in population tat was ‘ot matched by an inward migration of people to Aftice. Slavery meant that economic, social ‘and polieal development within Affica was constrained by a loss of population, which under ‘other circumstances would have significently altered the course of Aftican history Table 1 Enslaved Afticans Destined forthe Americas andthe Islamic World, 1500-1900 “avercas | Percent | Ilamie world | Percent [TOTAL 1300-1700 | 2,150,000 [334 [180,000 | 486 [3,700,000 T7O0-1800 | 600000 | ES T300000 FTF; B00 0G TROO-1900 |S RTO [FFF [T1300 f2-S S00 0G !TOTAL [TRH0900 [718 [ATO —>RI— [TROD | ‘source: David Blt etal, The TranvAlanie Slave Trade Database (epeweslavevoyagesonptasvindefacs), and Lovejoy, Transformations in Slavery, 26 47,018, Because of the survival of extensive documentation onthe movements of slaves to the ‘Americas, tis posible to estimate the sale and diestion of enforced migration of Africans under slavery and thereby provide as assessment ofthe impact of trans-Altc slavery on Inikor, JE, “Slavery in Afica and the Translantic Slave Trade,” in Alusne Jlloh and Stephen E. Maizish (es). The Afican Diaspora (Arlington, TX: Texas A&M Univesity Press, 1996), 39-72 Klein, Martin A. Slavery and Colonial Rule in French West Africa, Senegal, Guinea, and Mali (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) Kopytoff, Igor and Miers, Suzanne, “Affican “Slavery as an Institution of Marginality;” in Suzanne Miers and Igor Kopytoff, eds, Slavery In Africa: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives (Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1977), 381 Law, Robin, Ouidah, The Social History of a West African Slaving‘Port™ 1727-1892 (Athens, (OF: Obio University Press, 2004) Lovejoy, Paul E., Transformations in Slavery. A History of Slavery in Africa (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2" ed, 2000) Lovejoy, Paul E. and Hogendorm, Jan. 1993. Slow Death for Slavery. The Course of Abolition in ‘Northern Nigeria, 1897-1936 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2™ ed, 2000) Meillssoux, Claude, The Anshropology of Slavery. The Womb of Iron and Gold (Chica: University of Chicago Press, 1991) Miers, Suzanne and Roberts, Richard, eds, The End of Slavery in Africa (Madison, Wh University of Wisconsin Press, 1988) Nwokaji,G. Ugo, The Slave Trade and Culture: Atlantic Commerce and the Aro Trade Diaspora {nthe Bigh of Biafra (New York: Cambridge University Pres, 2010) Patterson, Orlando, Slavery and Social Death, A Comparative Study (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1982) Robertson, Claire C. and Klein, Martin A. eds, Women and Slavery in fica. (Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1983) 2Rodney, Walter, "Slavery nd Other Forms of Social Oppression on the Upper Giinea Coast in the Context of the Atlantic Slave Trade" Journal of African History, 7, 4 (1966), 431-43 Ross, Benadets, ed, Reconfiuring Slavery: West African Trajectories (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2008) ‘Shell, Robert, Children of Bondage. A Social History of the Slave Society atthe Cape of Good Hope 1652-1838 (London: James Currey, 1994) Sheriff, Abdul, Saves Spices and ivory in Zancibar (London: James Curey, 1987) Sparks, Randy, The Two Princes of Calabar: An Eighteenth Century Ailanic Odpssey (Cambridge, MA: Harvard Univesity Press, 2004) ‘Wreht, John, The Trans-Saharan Slave Trade (London: Routledge, 2007) ‘Wright, Marcia, "Women in Pei A Commentary on the Life Stories of Captives in Ninetenth (Century Eas Central Africa” rican Social Research, 20 (1975), 800-19, * Paul E. Lovejoy, Transformations in Slavery. A History of Slavery in friea (Cambridge: ‘Cambridge University Press,2™ ed, 2000). * Joseph E Inikori, “Slavery in Aftica and the Transatlantic Slave Trade"in AlusineJlloh and Stephen E. Maizish (eds). The Aftican Diaspora (Arlington, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 1996) 39-72, ° Igor Kopytoff and Miers, Suzanne, “Affican ‘Slavery’ as an Instittion of Marginaity," in ‘Suzanne Miers and Igor Kopytof, es, Slavery in Area: Historical and Anthropological Perspective, (Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1977), 3-81. 28Meilassoux, The Antiropology of Slavery. The Womb of rn and Gold (Chicago: University of| Chicago Pres, 199). * Manin A. Klcia, Slavery and Colonial Rule in French West Africa. Senegal, Guinea, and Mali (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998). Lovejoy, Tramaformations in Savery, 123. 7 ai, 127-32 "ALE. Afigho, Ropes of Sand, Studies in Igbo History and Culture (Ibadan: University Press, 1981). * ovtendo Paterson, Slavery and Sotal Death. A Comparative Sudy (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1982). H.R, Palmer, The Born Sahara and Sudan (New York: Negro University Pres [1936], repent, 1970), 218, " Wiliam Snegrave, New Account of Some Pars of Guinea andthe Slave Trade (London: Frank Cas, 1734] reprint, 1971), 158 also see Robin Law, “Royal Monopoly and Private [Enterprise in the Adantic Trade: The Case of Dahomey,” Journal ofan History, 18,4 (1979, 573 "PLEA, Hai, “Sources on early Sierra Leone: (6) Barera on Just Enslavement, 1606," Afcana Research Bulletin, 6 (1978), 67. " Francis Moore, Travel nto the Inland Parts of Africa (London: E. Cave, 1738), 42. Also see ‘Walter Rodney, “Slavery and Other Forms of Socal Oppression on the Upper Guinea Coast in the Context of the Atlantic Slave Trad,” Journal of fHiean History, 7,4 (1966) 431-43. 25 Cuvelier and. Jain, L°Ancien Congo daprés les archives romaines (1518-1640) (Brussels, 1954), 135, Also see John D. Fag, “Slaves and Society in Westem Alea ¢. 445-c 1700: Journal of African History, 21, 3 (1980), 305, * John Hawkins, as quoted in Elizabeth Donan, ed, DcumensMustratve ofthe Slave Trade 10 America (Washington, DC, 1980-5), vo. 148-49. "claire. Robertson and Matin A Ki, eds, omen and Slavery in Aiea, (Madison, WE University of Wisconsin Press, 1983). ™ Lovejoy, Transformations in Slavery, 168-186, ™ Pau E, Lovejoy and Toyin Flo, es, Pawnship Slavery and Colonialism in Arca (Trenton, NJ: Aca World Press, 2003), Paul F, Lovejoy and David Richardson, “The Business of Slavin: Pawnshipin Wester Alia, 1600-1810," Journal of African Histon 42:1 (2001), 67-8, * Willi, John Ralph (ed.), Saves and Slavery in Muslim Africa (London 1985,2 vols). Ahmad Babs, Mra alSuud: Ahmad Baba Replies om Slavery (Rabat Istteof African Swudies, Université Muhammad V, (1614/15), 200, tans. Jobn Hunvick and Fatima Harr). * Jox6 C. Curto, “The Story of Nben, 1817-20: Unlawfl Enslavement and the Concept of “Original Freedom’ in Angol,"in Pau E, Lovejoy and David Y. Trotman, e's, TransAtlantic Dimensions of Ethnicity in the African Diaspors (London: Contin, 2003) 2 Randy Spark, The Two Princes of Calabar: An Eighteenh-Century Atlantic Odyssey (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2004), 2 For rae onthe East Afican coast and inte interior, see Edward Alpers, East ica andthe Indian Ocean Princeton, NJ: Markus Wiener Publishers, 2009); Guyn Campbell, “The 90Economies of te Indian Ovean and Red Sea Slave Trades inthe 19th Century: An Overview, ‘Slavery and Abolition, 90, 3 (1988), }-20; Benigna Zimba, Slave Routes and Oral Tradition in ‘Southeastern Africa (Maputo, Mozambique: Filsom Entertainment, 2005). ® Robin Law, Ouidah, The Social History of@ West African Slaving ‘Port 1727-1892 (Athens, ‘OH Ohio University Press, 2008); Law, The Slave Coast of West Africa 1S0-17S0, The Impact of the Atlamic Slave Trade on an Afrlcan Soctey (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991). * Carolyn Brown and Pal E, Lovejoy, es, Repereuslons ofthe Alantc Slave Trade: The Interior ofthe Bight of Biafra and the African Diaspora (Trenton, NJ: Aiea World Pres, 2010); G. Ugo Nwokeji, The Slave Trade and Culture: Atlantic Commerce and the Aro Trade Diaspora inthe Bight of Biafra (New York: Cambridge University Pres, 2010) * Om Muhammad Bell's attempt to prevent sles othe Chrisins, see Paul E. Lovejoy, “The Clapperton-Bello Exchange: the Sokoto Jihad and the Trans-Adantic Slave Trade, 1804-1837," in Cuistopher Wise (ed), The Desert Shore: Literatures ofthe African Sahel (Boulder: Lynne ‘Rien, 2000), 201-28, * Paul E. Lovejoy and Jan Hogendor, Slow Death for Slavery. The Cowse of Abolition in [Northern Nigeria, 1897-1936 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993). ® paul E, Lovejoy “Internal Markets or an Atlati-Sahara Divide? How Women Fit into the Slave Trade of West Africa,” in Gwyn Campbell, Suzanne Miers, and Joseph C, Miller (ed), Women and Slavery (Athens: Ohio University Press, 2007). » Robin Law, ed, From Slave Trade 19 ‘egitimate" Commerce: The Commercial Transition bn ‘Ninetenth-Century West Africa (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 313 Manin A. Klein and Richard Rober, “The Banamba Save Exodus of 1905 andthe Delin of Slavery in the Westem Sudan, Journal of African History, 21,3 (1980), 375-98, ® Lovejoy and Hogendorn, Slow Death fr Savery, | Suzanne Miers and Richard Roberts, eds, The End of Slavery in Africa (Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988). > Benedetta Ross, ed, Reconfiguring Slavery: West African Trajectories (Liverpool: Liverpool ‘University Press, 2005), % Suzanne Miers, Slavery inthe Twentieth Century: The Evolution ofa Global Pattern Oxford: Rowman & Litlfild, 2003),