Slavery in Arabia and east Africa, 1800-1913

Abstract

Slavery in Arabia is usually regarded as benign in contrast to slavery in the Caribbean. The difference is often explained in terms of cultural values and stress is often laid on the role of Islam. This paper analyses this view primarily in terms of men employed in oasis agriculture and pearling in Arabia in the long nineteenth century, although some attention is also given to the situation of women. It is argued here that differences in the skill requirements of growing sugar in the Caribbean and dates in Arabia, as well as differences in the importance of self-supervision, explain the differences in the character of slavery. The centrality of market forces in explaining behaviour is developed by analysing the supply of slaves from Africa to Arabia and the demand for slaves derived from models of a date plantation and a pearling voyage. The economic return to organizing date gardens, so that the slaves have enough income to raise children is also discussed, and the interface between this source of supply and that of newly purchased is analysed. A geo-referenced data base of slave prices is developed and used to explore these issues. It is argued that Britain’s efforts to suppress the slave trade, the division of east Africa among colonial powers, and state development in Ethiopia drove long run increases in the supply price of slaves. The opening of the Suez canal increased the demand price of dates after 1869, while rising incomes led to an increased demand for pearls later in the nineteenth century. The increased prices of these products increased the demand price of slaves. The evolution of demand and supply both contributed to a long run rise in the price of slaves.