Slavery was widely practiced by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, both prior to European colonisation and subsequently.

Slavery and related practices of forced labor varied greatly between regions and over time. In some instances, traditional practices may have continued after European colonisation.

North America

Many of the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, such as the Haida and Tlingit, were traditionally known as fierce warriors and slave-traders, raiding as far south as California.[1][2][3] Slavery was hereditary, the slaves being prisoners of war. Their targets often included members of the Coast Salish groups. Among some tribes about a quarter of the population were slaves.[4][5] One slave narrative was composed by an Englishman, John R. Jewitt, who had been taken alive when his ship was captured in 1802; his memoir provides a detailed look at life as a slave, and explains that among his slavemasters, the main tribal chief had 50 slaves and his deputies up to a dozen each.[6]

The Pawnee of the Great Plains, the Iroquois of the state of New York, and the Yurok and Klamath of California, were known to keep slaves.[7][8][9]

Mesoamerica

In this illustration from the Ramírez Codex, the three men in the background represent slaves who were sacrificed as part of the funeral rites for the Aztec Emperor Auitzotl.

In Mesoamerica, the most common forms of slavery were those of prisoners of war and debtors. People unable to pay back debts could be sentenced to work as slaves to the persons owed until the debts were worked off. The Mayan[10][11] and Aztec[12] civilizations both practiced slavery. Warfare was important to Maya society, because raids on surrounding areas provided the victims required for human sacrifice, as well as slaves for the construction of temples.[13] Most victims of human sacrifice were prisoners of war or slaves.[14] Slavery was not usually hereditary; children of slaves were born free.

The Kalinago of Dominica were known to keep slaves.[15]

South America

In the Inca Empire, workers were subject to a Mit'a in lieu of taxes which they paid by working for the government, a form of corvée labor.[16] Each ayllu, or extended family, would decide which family member to send to do the work. It is debated whether this system of forced labor counts as slavery.

The Tehuelche of Patagonia, and the Tupinambá of Brazil, were known to keep slaves.[17]

References

  1. ↑ Ames, Kenneth M.; Maschner, Herbert D. G. (1999). Peoples of the northwest coast: their archaeology and prehistory. London: Thames & Hudson, p. 196.
  2. ↑ Green, Jonathan S. (1915). Journal of a tour on the north west coast of America in the year 1829, containing a description of a part of Oregon, California and the north west coast and the numbers, manners and customs of the native tribes. New York city: Reprinted for C. F. Heartman, p. 45.
  3. ↑ Ames, Kenneth M. (2001). "Slaves, Chiefs and Labour on the Northern Northwest Coast". World Archaeology 33 (1): 1–17., p. 3.
  4. ↑ "UH - Digital History". digitalhistory.uh.edu. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007.
  5. ↑ "Warfare". civilization.ca. Gatineau: Canadian Museum of History. 30 November 1998. Archived from the original on 23 September 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  6. ↑ BROWN, ROBERT, ed. (1896). "VIII. MUSIC—MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS—SLAVES [...]". THE ADVENTURES OF JOHN JEWITT. London: CLEMENT WILSON. Retrieved 27 May 2023. Maquina had nearly fifty, male and female, in his house, a number constituting about one half of its inhabitants, comprehending those obtained by war and purchase; whereas none of the other chiefs had more than twelve
  7. ↑ Helle, Richard. "Slavery". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Sweeney, James L. (2007). "Caribs, Maroons, Jacobins, Brigands, and Sugar Barons: The Last Stand of the Black Caribs on St. Vincent" Archived 2012-02-27 at the Wayback Machine, African Diaspora Archaeology Network, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, March 2007. Retrieved 26 April 2007
  9. ↑ Ginzburg 2012.
  10. ↑ Foias 2014.
  11. ↑ "Maya Social Structure". Tarlton Law Library. University of Texas at Austin. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  12. ↑ Hernández 2012.
  13. ↑ "Maya Society". Library.umaine.edu. Archived from the original on 1 June 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  14. ↑ "Aztec". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  15. ↑ Helle, Richard. "Slavery". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  16. ↑ Canseco 1999, p. 63.
  17. ↑ Helle, Richard. "Slavery". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
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