Slave Trade to and from Madagascar
Slave Trade to and from Madagascar
- Jane HooperJane HooperDepartment of History and Art History, George Mason University
Summary
An estimated half a million people from Madagascar were enslaved and transported across the Indian and Atlantic Oceans between the 16th and mid-19th centuries. Slave trafficking within the Indian Ocean predated European arrival but would become particularly intense in coastal Madagascar starting in the 17th century. Throughout the following century, European and non-European merchants competed to purchase enslaved islanders, and this demand for people continued into the 19th century, when people were transported both to and from the shores of Madagascar. This coerced movement of people likely had a lasting impact on cultural and linguistic practices in nearby Mauritius, Réunion, the Comoros, the Seychelles, and South Africa. People who trace their ancestry back to Madagascar can also be found in the Americas, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. While scholars disagree about how many people were shipped on vessels from the island, most agree that Madagascar served as a hub for slave trading not only within the Indian Ocean but also between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans for several centuries.
Subjects
- African Diaspora
- Slavery and Slave Trade