A History Largely Untold
When the subject of historical slavery arises, most people think immediately of the Atlantic slave trade — the horrific trafficking of Africans to the Americas between the 16th and 19th centuries. This is the slavery that dominates Western education, media, and public discourse. Yet there is another slave trade, far longer in duration and comparable in scale, that remains largely unknown: the Arab-Islamic slave trade, which began in the 7th century and continued — in some areas — well into the 20th century.
This is not a matter of historical accident. The Arab slave trade lasted approximately 1,400 years, involved the enslavement of an estimated 17 million or more Africans (along with millions of Europeans, Persians, Indians, and Central Asians), and was explicitly sanctioned by Islamic scripture. Understanding this history is essential for any honest reckoning with Islam's relationship to human bondage.
Slavery in the Quran
Unlike some religions that addressed slavery ambiguously, the Quran explicitly acknowledges and regulates slavery as a permanent institution. It never calls for abolition. The key verses include:
Sexual Access to Slave Women
"And those who guard their private parts, except from their wives or those their right hands possess [ma malakat aymanuhum] — for indeed, they are not to be blamed." — Quran 23:5-6
"O Prophet, indeed We have made lawful to you your wives to whom you have given their due compensation and those your right hand possesses from what Allah has returned to you [of captives]." — Quran 33:50
"And [also prohibited to you are all] married women except those your right hands possess." — Quran 4:24
The phrase "those your right hand possesses" (ma malakat aymanukum) is the Quran's standard term for slaves, particularly female slaves taken as war captives. These verses explicitly grant Muslim men sexual access to their female slaves — regardless of whether those women were already married (4:24 specifically addresses married captive women). For a detailed analysis, see our article on right hand possesses: sexual slavery in Islam.
Slavery as Punishment and Spoils
The Quran treats captured enemies as property to be distributed. Surah 8 (Al-Anfal, "The Spoils") is largely devoted to the distribution of war booty, including human captives. Quran 47:4 gives instructions for dealing with captives: "So when you meet those who disbelieve, strike their necks until, when you have inflicted slaughter upon them, then secure their bonds."
Muhammad as Slave Owner and Trader
Muhammad personally owned, bought, sold, and gifted slaves. This is established beyond dispute in the hadith literature and early biographical sources (sira):
- Owned slaves: Muhammad owned numerous slaves throughout his life. Among the most well-known were Bilal ibn Rabah (purchased by Abu Bakr), Zayd ibn Harithah (a gift), and Maria al-Qibtiyya (a Coptic Christian slave sent to him by the ruler of Egypt). See our article on Muhammad as a slave owner and trader.
- Received slaves as war booty: After military victories, Muhammad received a share of the captured prisoners, including women. After the Battle of Banu Qurayza, Muhammad took Rayhana bint Zayd as a slave concubine from among the captive Jewish women. See the Banu Qurayza massacre.
- Traded slaves: Muhammad bought and sold slaves. In one hadith, he traded two Black slaves for one: "A slave came and gave allegiance to the Prophet for emigration. The Prophet did not realize he was a slave. Then the slave's master came, and the Prophet said, 'Sell him to me.' He bought him for two Black slaves" (Sahih Muslim 1602).
- Gifted slaves: Muhammad gave slaves as gifts and received them. Maria the Copt was a gift from Muqawqis, the Byzantine governor of Egypt. See Maria the Copt: Christian slave concubine.
Since Muhammad is considered the uswa hasana ("perfect example," Quran 33:21) whose behavior all Muslims should emulate, his personal involvement in slavery has been used for 1,400 years to justify the institution.
The Historical Scope: 17+ Million Enslaved
The historian Ralph Austen estimated that approximately 17 million Africans were enslaved through the trans-Saharan, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean slave trades — all dominated by Arab and Muslim traders. Other estimates range higher. The historian Paul Lovejoy estimated the trans-Saharan trade alone transported 7.2 million enslaved Africans between the 7th and 20th centuries.
Unlike the Atlantic slave trade, which lasted approximately 400 years (roughly 1450-1865), the Arab-Islamic slave trade lasted over 1,300 years. Its geographic scope was vast:
East African Trade
The East African coast — particularly the regions of modern-day Tanzania, Mozambique, Kenya, and Madagascar — was a primary source of enslaved people for Arab traders. The island of Zanzibar became the largest slave trading port in East Africa, with an estimated 50,000 slaves passing through its markets annually by the mid-19th century. The Swahili word for the East African coast, Zanj, became synonymous with the slave trade.
Arab slave traders penetrated deep into the African interior. Tippu Tip (Hamed bin Mohammed el Murjebi), a Zanzibari-Arab slave trader, built a vast commercial empire in Central Africa in the late 19th century, enslaving tens of thousands of Africans in the Congo region.
Trans-Saharan Trade
For over a millennium, enslaved Africans were marched across the Sahara Desert in conditions of extreme brutality. The mortality rate on trans-Saharan slave caravans has been estimated at 20-30% — meaning one in four to one in three enslaved people died during the crossing. Many of those who died were simply left where they fell, and the routes of the slave caravans could be traced by the bones scattered along the way.
Beyond Africa
The Arab-Islamic slave trade was not limited to Africa. Millions of Europeans were enslaved during Islamic conquests and Barbary pirate raids. Estimates suggest that between 1 million and 1.25 million Europeans were enslaved by North African Barbary pirates between the 16th and 19th centuries alone (Robert C. Davis, Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters). Central Asian peoples, Indians, and Persians were also enslaved in large numbers throughout Islamic history.
The Practice of Castration
One of the most horrific aspects of the Arab slave trade was the widespread practice of castrating male slaves to produce eunuchs. Eunuchs were highly valued in Muslim societies as harem guards, court officials, and servants. The demand was enormous, and the practice was systematic.
The castration procedure had a mortality rate estimated at 60-90% — meaning that for every eunuch who survived, between two and nine boys died during or after the procedure. Since Islamic law technically prohibited Muslims from performing castration, the operation was typically carried out by Christians or other non-Muslims at designated locations along the trade routes — a legal fiction that allowed Muslims to benefit from the practice while maintaining they did not personally violate the prohibition.
The historian Jan Hogendorn documented the castration centers of the slave trade in his study The Hideous Trade, noting that the town of Zawila in Libya and certain locations in Upper Egypt were major castration centers where captured boys were mutilated before being sold into Muslim markets.
Comparison with the Atlantic Slave Trade
A comparison between the Arab-Islamic and Atlantic slave trades reveals several important differences:
| Factor | Atlantic Slave Trade | Arab-Islamic Slave Trade |
|---|---|---|
| Duration | ~400 years (1450s-1860s) | ~1,300+ years (7th century-20th century) |
| Estimated numbers | ~12.5 million transported | ~17+ million (Africa alone) |
| Religious sanction | Debated; abolition movement was Christian-led | Explicitly sanctioned by Quran and hadith |
| Castration | Rare | Systematic and widespread |
| Descendant population | Tens of millions in the Americas | Relatively few in the Middle East |
| Internal abolition movement | Strong (Wilberforce, etc.) | Virtually nonexistent; abolished under Western pressure |
The last point in the table — the relative absence of descendant populations — is particularly telling. In the Americas, enslaved Africans married, had children, and their descendants number tens of millions today. In the Arab-Islamic world, the descendant population is comparatively small. This is partly explained by the mass castration of male slaves and by the fact that children born to slave concubines were often not integrated into society in the same way.
Late Abolition: External Pressure, Not Internal Reform
Islam never produced an indigenous abolition movement. Slavery was abolished in Muslim-majority countries primarily through Western colonial pressure, international diplomacy, and economic incentives — not through internal religious reform.
- Saudi Arabia did not formally abolish slavery until 1962, under pressure from President Kennedy and the broader international community.
- Mauritania was the last country to legally abolish slavery in 1981, and slavery persists there in practice to this day. The UN and human rights organizations estimate that tens of thousands of Mauritanians remain in conditions of hereditary slavery.
- Yemen and Oman abolished slavery in the 1960s and 1970s, respectively.
- The Ottoman Empire formally prohibited the slave trade in stages during the 19th century, largely due to British pressure, but slavery continued in practice well into the 20th century.
The reason Islam never produced an abolition movement is theological: the Quran permits slavery, Muhammad practiced it, and the scholarly consensus (ijma) of 1,400 years affirmed it. To call for abolition would be to contradict the Quran and the Prophet — which, in many interpretations, constitutes apostasy. See our article on why Islam never abolished slavery.
Modern Slavery and ISIS
The theological justification for slavery has not disappeared. When ISIS captured Yazidi women in 2014, they explicitly cited Quranic authority for enslaving them. ISIS's English-language magazine Dabiq published a detailed theological defense of slavery, citing Quran 4:24, 23:5-6, and 33:50, along with hadith and classical jurisprudence. Their argument was straightforward: slavery is permitted in the Quran, was practiced by Muhammad, and was unanimously accepted by classical scholars. Any Muslim who denies this, they argued, denies the Quran itself.
While mainstream Muslim organizations condemned ISIS's actions, they struggled to provide a theological rebuttal. The Quranic verses and hadith cited by ISIS are authentic and have been interpreted to permit slavery for 1,400 years. The condemnation of ISIS slavery tends to be moral and emotional rather than scriptural. For more, see ISIS and following Muhammad's example.
The Silence Around This History
The Arab-Islamic slave trade remains one of history's great untold stories. Several factors contribute to this silence:
- Religious sensitivity: Criticizing Islam's role in slavery invites accusations of Islamophobia.
- No descendant advocacy: Mass castration and high mortality rates meant fewer descendants to preserve the memory and demand recognition.
- Western guilt focus: Western societies understandably focus on their own history of slavery, but this creates a false impression that slavery was uniquely Western.
- Lack of documentation: The Arab slave trade left fewer written records than the Atlantic trade, making it easier to ignore.
- Ongoing practice: In countries like Mauritania, acknowledging the Islamic basis of slavery threatens an institution that powerful interests wish to maintain.
Sources
- Quran 4:24, 23:5-6, 33:50, 47:4, 33:21
- Sahih Muslim 1602 — Muhammad trading two Black slaves for one
- Sahih al-Bukhari 2541 — Muhammad's slave ownership
- Ralph Austen, "The Trans-Saharan Slave Trade: A Tentative Census," The Uncommon Market (1979)
- Paul Lovejoy, Transformations in Slavery: A History of Slavery in Africa (Cambridge University Press, 2012)
- Robert C. Davis, Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters: White Slavery in the Mediterranean (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003)
- Jan Hogendorn, "The Hideous Trade: Economic Aspects of the Manufacture and Sale of Eunuchs," Paideuma, vol. 45 (1999)
- Bernard Lewis, Race and Slavery in the Middle East (Oxford University Press, 1990)
- Murray Gordon, Slavery in the Arab World (New Amsterdam Books, 1989)
- Ronald Segal, Islam's Black Slaves: The Other Black Diaspora (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001)