BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY : THE ARAB SLAVE TRADE AND SLAVERY :

The Arab Slave Trade was the practice of slavery in the Arab world, mainly in Western Asia, North Africa, East Africa and certain parts of Europe during there period of domination by Arab Leaders. The trade was focused on the slave markets of the Middle East, North Africa and the Horn of Africa. People trade were not limited to a certain race, ethnicity or religion and included Arabs and Berbers especially the trades early days. During the 8th and 9th centuries of the Fatimid Caliphate most of the slaves were Slavic Eastern European. How ever slaves were drawn from a wide variety of regions and included Mediterranean people, Persians, Turkic and people from Scandinavian, English, Dutch and Irish.

Berbers from North Africa and various other people from the Caucasus mountains  regions and parts of varied origins as well as those of African origins. Towards the 18th and 19th centuries, the flow of slaves from East Africa increased with the rise of the Oman Sultanas which was based in Zanzibar. They came into direct trade conflict and competition with the Portuguese and other European along the Swahili Coast. Its is believe that between 10 and 18 million Africans were enslaved by Arab slave traders and taken across the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and Sahara Desert between 650 and 1900.