African Voices On Slavery And The Slave Trade. Volume 2. Essays On Sources And Methods Essays On Sources And Methods

What were the experiences of those in Africa who suffered from the practice of slavery, those who found themselves captured and sold from person to person, those who died on the trails, those who were forced to live in fear? And what of those Africans in Africa who profited from the slave trade and slavery? What were their perspectives? How do we access any of these experiences and views? This volume explores diverse sources such as oral testimonies, posses- sion rituals, Arabic language sources, European missionary, administrative and court records and African intellectual writings to discover what they can tell us about slavery and the slave trade in Africa. Also discussed are the methodologies that can be used to uncover the often hidden experiences of Africans embedded in these sources. This book will be invaluable for students and researchers interested in the history of slavery, the slave trade and post-slavery in Africa. Volume 2 Detailed Contents: Introduction. Sources And Methods : Writing About African Slavery And The Slave Trade / Alice Bellagamba, Sandra E. Greene And Martin A. Klein -- Excavating Arabic Sources For The History Of Slavery In Western Africa / Chislaine Lydon And Bruce S. Hall -- Christian Missionaries On Record : Documenting Slavery And The Slave Trade From The Late Fifteenth To The Early Twentieth Century / Sandra E. Greene -- Early Modern European-language Sources On African Slavery : The Historian At Work / Pierluigi Valsecchi -- African Intellectual Ideas In The Age Of Legal Slavery And The Slave Trade / Sandra E. Greene And Oluwatoyin B. Oduntan -- Looking For Slavery In Colonial Archives : French West Africa / Martin A. Klein -- Slave Voices In African Colonial Courts : Sources And Methods / Kristin Mann And Richard Roberts -- Understanding Slavery In Possession Rituals / Alessandra Brivio -- Yesterday And Today : Studying African Slavery, The Slave Trade And Their Legacies Through Oral Sources / Alice Bellagamba. Edited By Alice Bellagamba, Sandra E. Greene And Martin A. Klein. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. 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 (such as European travel accounts, colonial documents, court cases, and missionary records) and less-explored sources of information (such as 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 the slave trade. Cover 1 Half-title page 3 Title page 5 Copyright page 6 Contents 7 Figures 8 Contributors 9 Acknowledgement 11 Introduction Sources and methods: Writing about African slavery and the slave trade 13 1 Excavating Arabic sources for the history of slavery in Western Africa 27 2 Christian missionaries on record: Documenting slavery and the slave trade from the late fifteenth to the early twentieth century 62 3 Early modern European-language sources on African slavery: The historian at work 86 4 African intellectual ideas in the age of legal slavery and the slave trade 105 5 Looking for slavery in colonial archives: French West Africa 126 6 Slave voices in African colonial courts: Sources and methods 144 7 Understanding slavery in possession rituals 166 8 Yesterday and today: Studying African slavery, the slave trade and their legacies through oral sources 186 Index 210 Pt. 1. Remembering Slavery And The Slave Trade -- Pt. 2. The Verbal Arts And Everyday Objects -- Pt. 3. Documenting Our Own Histories And Cultural Practices -- Pt. 4. Slavery Observed: European Travelers' Accounts -- Pt. 5. Administrative Records -- Pt. 6. Legal Records -- Pt. 7. Recorded Encounters With The Enslaved: Christian Workers In Africa -- Pt. 8. Documents From Muslim Africa -- Pt. 9. Living With The Past. Alice Bellagamba, Sandra E. Greene, Martin A. Klein With The Assistance Of Carolyn Brown. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. To cast light on African perspectives of the history of slavery, top Africanist scholars have examined both conventional historical sources and less-explored sources of information. African Voices on Slavery and the Slave Trade is the first of two volumes providing a trove of African sources for studying African slavery and slave trade.