The Turkistan Slave Trade


Figure 1.--Russian artist Vasily Vereshchagin (1842-1904) traveled extensively through Turistan (1869), the Himalayas, India and Tibet (1873), and again in India (1884). His travels served as material for his psintings. This work by Vereshchagin shows a child being sold as a slave. It was painted (1871-72).

Turkistan in Turish means the 'Land of the Turks'. It is the Area of central Asia situated between Siberia, (north), the Gobi Desert/Tibet (east), India/Persia (south), and the Caspian Sea (west). It was more of a ethnic/cultural ara than a political entity. But it was a recognized area, referred to ib both Turkic and Persian sagas. It was the area transversed by the Silk Road. Several ethnic groups populated the area, including Kazakhs, Khazars, Kyrgyz, Turkmens, Uyghurs, Uzbeks, and others. The Turkic tribes moved west into other areas (Turkey, Azerbaijan, Tatarstan, the Crimea. These areas are, however outside of historic Turkistan. The area ws conquered by Gehis Kahn (13th century) and subsequently Islamicized. It was conquered by Tsarist Russia (19th century). Slavery was an accepted practice in Turkistan and this continued after Islamization. We have little information on slavery in Turkistan except that it existed. Slaves were one of the many commodities traded along the Silk Road. We know little about central Asia slavery until modern times. Some sources suggest fairly substabntial mumbers of people were involved. The Khanate of Khiva operated a slave market for captured Russian and Persian slaves (17th-19th centuries). Some historians estimate that during the first half of the 19th century alone, as many as a million Persians and an unknown number of Russians were captured and sold as slaves in the Central Asian khanates. The Russians move to ablosh slavery as they extended their control south into the Caucauses and Central Asia (mid/late-19th century). One report at mid-century estimate the population of the Khanate of Bukhara at 1.2 million people, including 0.2 million Persian slaves. [Wolff] Russian conquest of the Caucasus led to the abolition of slavery there (1860s). Russian advances in central Asia (Turkistan) led to the conquest of the Central Asian Islamic khanates of Bukhara, Khiva, and Samarkand (1870s).

Geography

Turkistan in Turish means the 'Land of the Turks'. The term Central Asia is commonly used in the same semse as Turistan. It is the Area of central Asia situated between Siberia, (north), the Gobi Desert/Tibet (east), India/Persia (south), and the Caspian Sea (west). It was more of a ethnic/cultural area than a political entity. But it was a recognized area, referred to ib both Turkic and Persian sagas.

Silk Road

Turkistan was the area between China and the West transversed by the Silk Road. Slaves were one of the many commodities traded along the Silk Road.

Ethnic Groups

Several ethnic groups populated the area, including Kazakhs, Khazars, Kyrgyz, Turkmens, Uyghurs, Uzbeks, and others. The Turkic tribes moved west into other areas (Turkey, Azerbaijan, Tatarstan, the Crimea. These areas are, however outside of historic Turkistan.

Islamization

The area was conquered by Gehis Kahn (13th century) and subsequently Islamicized. It was conquered by Tsarist Russia (19th century).

Nature of Slavery

Slavery was an accepted practice in Turkistan and this continued after Islamization. We have little information on slavery in Turkistan except that it existed.

Modern Times

We know little about central Asia slavery until modern times. Some sources suggest fairly substabntial mumbers of people were involved. They appear to have been primarily Persisns and Russians. We are not sure why these two groups were the primary peoples enslsved. The Khanate of Khiva operated a slave market for captured Russian and Persian slaves (17th-19th centuries). Some historians estimate that during the first half of the 19th century alone, as many as a million Persians and an unknown number of Russians were captured and sold as slaves in the Central Asian khanates. The Russians move to ablosh slavery as they extended their control south into the Caucauses and Central Asia (mid/late-19th century). One report at mid-century estimate the population of the Khanate of Bukhara at 1.2 million people, including 0.2 million Persian slaves. [Wolff]

Abolition

As far as we know, there was no Islamic abolitionist movement. It was the Russians who ended slavery in Turkistan. The Russian Tzarist administration liberated the Kazakh slaves (1859). Russian conquest of the Caucasus led to the abolition of slavery there (1860s). Russian advances in central Asia (Turkistan) led to the conquest of the Central Asian Islamic khanates of Bukhara, Khiva, and Samarkand (1870s). Russian troops moving into Khiva reported 29,300 Persian slaves (1898). They had been captured by Turkoman raiders.

Sources

Wolff, Josef. Report of 1843–1845.






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Created: 6:41 AM 9/12/2010
Last updated: 6:41 AM 9/12/2010