African Voices on Slavery and the Slave Trade: Essays on Sources and Methods

Though the history of slavery is a central topic for African, Atlantic world, and world history, most of the sources presenting research in this area are European in origin. To cast light on African perspectives, and on the point of view of enslaved men and women, this group of top Africanist scholars has examined both conventional historical sources (e.g., European travel accounts, colonial documents, court cases, and missionary records) and less-explored sources of information (e.g., folklore, oral traditions, songs and proverbs, life histories collected by missionaries and colonial officials, correspondence in Arabic, and consular and admiralty interviews with runaway slaves). Each source has a short introduction highlighting its significance and orienting the reader. This first of two volumes provides students and scholars with a trove of African sources for studying African slavery and slave trade.