Paper short abstract:

How did the Portuguese slavery system and the slave trade changed in the Far East? This presentation will reflect on who these slaves were and the role they played in these societies, as well as similarities between slavery as practiced by the Portuguese and Asians.

Paper long abstract:

How did the Portuguese slavery system and the slave trade changed in the Far East? Is it possible to find in these changes influences from human trafficking and slavery systems as practiced in East Asia? Based on contemporary sources, this reflection will try to understand who the slaves owned by Europeans were and what role they played in these societies. At the turn of the 17th century, along with the development of Macao and Manila, main centers for Portuguese, Spanish and other European merchants active in the Far East, slavery assumed many forms. It is possible to identify, for example, certain similarities between slavery as practiced by the Portuguese and slavery systems found in Japan. As for the social role played by slaves, far from being an intense slave trading post as the African ports in the same period, Macao depended on slavery as possibly one of the core social pillars to its Portuguese society, way beyond the role played by mere servants.