Slavery in the Ottoman Empire PDF

The institution of slavery in the Ottoman Empire was modelled on the institution of slavery in the previous Muslim Empires of the Middle East: the [slavery in the Rashidun Caliphate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Rashidun_Caliphate) (632--661), the [slavery in the Umayyad Caliphate](h...

The institution of slavery in the Ottoman Empire was modelled on the institution of slavery in the previous Muslim Empires of the Middle East: the [slavery in the Rashidun Caliphate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Rashidun_Caliphate) (632--661), the [slavery in the Umayyad Caliphate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Umayyad_Caliphate) (661--750), [slavery in the Abbasid Caliphate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Abbasid_Caliphate) (750--1258) and [slavery in the Mamluk Sultanate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Mamluk_Sultanate) (1258--1516), which in turn were all built upon [slavery in Islamic Law](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_views_on_slavery).[^\[8\]^](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Ottoman_Empire#cite_note-FOOTNOTEToledano20146%E2%80%937-8) Slavery was regulated by the *Seriat*, the religious Islamic Law, and by the secular Sultan\'s law *Kanun*, which was essentially supplementary regulations to facilitate the implementation of the Seriat law.[^\[8\]^](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Ottoman_Empire#cite_note-FOOTNOTEToledano20146%E2%80%937-8) Islamic Law allowed for Muslims to enslave non-Muslims, unless they were zimmis (protected minorities who had accepted Muslim rule), and slaves were therefore non-Muslims imported from non-Muslim lands outside of the Empire.[^\[8\]^](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Ottoman_Empire#cite_note-FOOTNOTEToledano20146%E2%80%937-8) While Muslims could only enslave non-Muslims, the conversion of a non-Muslim slave to Islam after their enslavement did not require the enslaver to manumit his slave.[^\[8\]^](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Ottoman_Empire#cite_note-FOOTNOTEToledano20146%E2%80%937-8) Since all non-Muslims outside of Muslim lands were legitimate targets of enslavement, there were slaves of different races. Officially, there were no difference made between slaves of difference races, but in practice, white slaves were given the highest status, with Ethiopians second and fully black African slaves given the lowest status among slaves.[^\[8\]^](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_Ottoman_Empire#cite_note-FOOTNOTEToledano20146%E2%80%937-8)